Akatsuki Heartbreaker
by Raynebow-NinjaChick
Summary: What will happen when Mizuki's father loses her in a bet with the Akatsuki? Will she survive her ordeals with the members of Akatsuki? OC/almost everyone in the Akatsuki
1. Chapter 1

**Akatsuki Heartbreaker**

**Chapter One: Sold To The Akatsuki**

I am stargazing as usual. I don't know why they mesmerize me so much, but they do. As I gaze I think about the feeling I had earlier. It wasn't a happy feeling, but a warning. I've had this feeling before; when I'd been sold to that man. I shudder at the thought of him. But before my father bought me back, he changed me. I'm now a freak and I'm also the only one that knows it. My father thinks that when he lost me previously, all I did was cook and clean for the man. But that's a lie; if my father knew the truth he'd be devastated.

You see, my father is a horrid gambler. Thankfully, with his job as a merchant, we have plenty of money no matter how much he loses. But sometimes he drinks a little too much and the bets get higher and higher.

If it weren't for me, his business would be gone. As a shinobi, I'm primary protection for the cargo. My father won't let me take other missions even though I'm supposed to. He says that my mission is to protect the cargo that will be going to wealthy people and that's how I'm serving my country. Of course, I'm ANBU level, but not officially. My father sent me to the Academy, but let me go no further then that. It doesn't matter that much to me. I don't need to go through rigorous training to learn jutsus, when all I need are my weapons and taijutsu. Though I do know a lot of ninjutsu, I don't enjoy using it.

The stars twinkle in the sky. And then I hear it. A rustle in the leaves, followed by a twig snapping. I know that it's another shinobi because an effort is being made to silence their movements. But my ears catch every sound. I act casual, as though I haven't noticed their presence yet. A shadow steps out of the forest surrounding my home and takes no notice of me. I slide some shuriken out of the pouch at my side and I prepare to throw them. They slide easily out of my hands and glide toward the stranger. He notices them and jumps back before they hit the ground. I hear a low oath before the exploding tag goes off. He flies back from the explosion, and then I'm behind him.

I give him a hard kick in the back and he flies into the wall of the house. But the thing that hits the ground isn't human.

"A substitution jutsu?" I gasp.

But then I feel a hard jab on the back of my neck and I black out.

**Earlier that night; Kakuzu's POV**

I had thought earlier that entering the gambling hall would be a bad idea. However, the man I was currently playing against was loaded. I could smell the delicious money on him. Of course I had been winning the previous games, because after playing against Itachi, who used his Sharingan while playing poker, this guy was too easy. And the sake was helping too.

The man looked almost desperate to win his money back, but I wouldn't give it up without a fight. So far I'd won the man's house, cargo for a journey tomorrow, almost all of his money, and I figured his dignity. Apparently he thought he had a good hand this time because he started to pull something out of his pocket with a smug look on his face.

"The girl in this picture's my daughter, I bet her for the entire lot", he gurgled.

I looked at the picture of the girl in his hand. She had pale almost white hair and big doe gray eyes. Her face was heart-shaped and she was smiling in the picture. She was… cute.

"This picture was taken a year ago, she looks even cuter now. And she's a shinobi you know", the man said.

"A shinobi?"

"Yeah, a good one too. She protects my cargo when we go on long journeys".

"Does she have any skills?"

"She's good at using weapons and she's good at hand to hand combat. Dunno about ninjutsu, or whatever it's called".

A talented ninja with looks to boot. She was indeed a find. Hidan will be mad with me, but who cares what he thinks.

As if he's unsure of what I'm thinking the man says, "And she's lucky too. I try to sneak her into casinos as often as I can. She always comes out with a sack full of money".

Oh yes, I'm taking this bet. A girl who can make money is my dreams come true.

"One more game", I challenge, "For the girl and the lot".  
"You're on".

The man lays down two threes and says boldly, "Three of a kind".

The cards on the table are a three, a king, a queen, and two aces. I smile triumphantly.

"Four of a kind", I say flashing my two aces.

The man's face turns a deep purple and he pulls out a hand dagger and moves to stab me. But before he can, I twist the blade in his hand and he ends up stabbing himself. Blood drips from his mouth, his eyes go wide, and the casino has become quiet.

"He attacked first without reason", I clearly say to the rest of the gamblers.

I gather up the deed to his house, the sack of money, and the picture of the girl. Oops, I forgot to ask the girl's name before I stabbed her father. Oh well.

I quickly and quietly move toward the man's house. It hadn't taken me long to find out where he lived. All I had to do was ask. And when I asked about the girl all they said was, "She's a nice girl".

I approach from the south, moving through bushes and trees as quietly as I can. I look up at the roof from the bushes. There she is.

Her skin glows in the moonlight, her hair blows in the breeze, her eyes gaze at the stars. And then she stiffens. She's noticed me. I pretend not to notice that she's on the roof and instead focus my gaze on the backdoor. She doesn't know that I know she's there. As silently as a cobra's strike she launches an attack of shuriken at me. I easily dodge them, but then I see the tags. Boom! They all explode at the same time. I fly back into the trees when I notice her. She's behind me. I receive a bone-breaking blow to my back and quickly do a jutsu.

"A substitution jutsu!" I hear her say astonishingly.

I give her a hard jab to her pressure point and she's out.

**Normal POV Again;**

Voices. I hear voices. One voice is slick like honey and the other is rough. The rough voice is screaming profanity at the honey voice.

"Why the fuck did you bring her here?!"

"It was a good bet and there was money", whines the honey voice.

"Money! Money doesn't fuckin' matter. How are we supposed to fuckin' explain this to the Leader!"

"If you weren't immortal, you'd be dead".

"Well if you weren't so fuckin' hard to kill, you'd be dead by fuckin' now!"

"Will you be quiet, she might wake up".

"Now I won't be fuckin' quiet. If she wakes up and screams her fuckin' lungs out, I'll chop off her fuckin' head!"

I don't like the dude dropping the F-bomb, but the other guy is… okay. Since I'm going to lose my head if I wake up I keep my eyes shut. In fact I release myself into a dreamless stupor. Then I feel myself being lifted up. I try really hard not to open my eyes to see who's carrying me.

"Why won't you carry her?"

"I'm not carrying that bitch !"

He did not just call me that. Okay, yes he did, but still. Grrr!

After a while I get used to being draped over the dude's shoulder like a sack of potatoes and although my captors don't speak much, when they do I listen.

"When is the bitch waking up?"

"About three days, I guess, I hit her pretty hard".

"Three days? So I guess she'll be asleep when that fag Itachi and that fish-stick Kisame get here?"

"Probably".

Then they quiet down. Kisame and Itachi. Itachi and Kisame. I memorize these names and put them on the list of people I hate.

"When are you going to carry her?"

"When she's a fuckin' sacrifice to Jashin!"

I don't know who Jashin is, but I don't like him. My hate list is getting pretty long. After a while I hear a sigh and then I'm flying. Oh, God, they threw me over a cliff. I'm going to die.

But then I feel rough arms circle my waist and I realize I'm being carried Mr. Profanity.

I hear him whispering curses under his breath and I feel like whispering them back to him. My day can't get any worse.

Oops, spoke to soon. The skies darken and it starts to rain. Great. The other guys have some form of protection from the rain, but I have nothing. In a matter of seconds I'm soaked. I'm cold. Freezing. Brrr. My lips feel like they've turned blue, my skin is numb, I can't feel. I'm gonna die.

"Let's stop here for the night to escape the rain", says Honey.

"This damn rain is so annoying", curses Mr. Profanity.

I'm dropped on the ground and I don't move. I can't move to be more precise. I've lost the ability to move at all. Because if I could, I'm sure I'd be running.

"Hey, Kakuzu! The little bitch is turning blue!"

"Then cover her up", Kakuzu says.

"No".

I feel hands pick me up and then I'm somewhat warm. I realize I'm against Kakuzu's chest. I'm sure if my cheeks weren't blue, they'd be red. I feel stitches. Is he hurt? He didn't seem to be when he attacked me. Did I hurt him? Unlikely. Before I know it I fall asleep against my enemy's chest.

I wake up to a gentle rocking motion, but I keep my eyes closed. I assume that I'm being carried again. And they still think that I'm out of it. Little do they know about my extreme healing factor. Supposed to be knocked out for three weeks? Make it one week. I heal one third faster then the average human. Thanks to that man. Yeah me (more like yeah right).

Once again my captors remain silent and except for the occasional bump in the road, my ride remains smooth. This is boring. I start to snooze when I hear Kakuzu murmur something.

"What?" asks Mr. Profanity.

"I said that I think it's going to be a clear night tonight and that we'll make good distance".

"Oh".

Once more silence surrounds us and then it happens. I once again am tossed through the air and instead of being caught I fall… and keep falling. What happened? Then I feel arms around my waist again.

"Why'd you have to drop the bitch?!"

Oh, I was dropped. On purpose or accident?

"I tripped on a branch. It happens".

I let out a mental sigh at that.

"Should have let the whore die".

"Hidan, I'm sick and tired off you calling her that. Please call her something else".

"Okay, you should have let the slut die".

I hear Kakuzu sigh and then we journey on.

Some hours later:

"We're going to stop here for the night", Kakuzu says.

"Finally, my feet are fuckin' tired".

The air is warm so there's no reason why Kakuzu needs to sleep beside me. I am laid down and no arms surround me. I'm safe. I wait an hour or so until I'm sure that they're asleep. Hidan is snoring and I can hear Kakuzu's quiet sighs. Silently I get up, stretching the muscles that I haven't used for days. Man, am I sore.

I start to walk out of the camp, but not without a look at my captors first. They both have black cloaks with red clouds on them and both are wearing rings. Hidan, I figure, has slicked back hair and looks rather unpleasant even with out his profanity obsession. Kakuzu is wearing a mask, so I can't see much about him. I grab the pack that I had packed two days ago for the journey with my father. What the jerks didn't know was that I had been planning on running away before they had kidnapped me. Oh well, they only helped my cause.

I walk out of the camp and start walking down a path. It's not safe to run yet; I might make too much noise. So I stroll down the path, my head in La-La Land. That is, till I bump into someone.

I glance up at the figure that has momentarily stopped my escape and stifle a gasp. There are two of them and they're wearing cloaks like Kakuzu and Hidan's. I'm dead, dead, dead. But wait…what if they don't know about me?

"Sorry", I mumble and begin to walk away.

The people don't even reply, they just continue to walk on.

So do I, until I hear, "Where do you think you're going you bitch!?"

"Shit", I silently curse.

I don't even turn around, I just start running and I don't stop. Because if I stop I'm going to die. I'm blindly running away not really looking where I'm going. I'm not even going full speed. And then I hit something… no… someone.

"Fuck", I curse.

"Little Bitch , you curse almost as much as me".

"Yeah right, Hidan", I say using his name to show my knowledge.

It works because he raises an eyebrow.

"How long have you been awake?" he asks.

"Couple days give or take".

"How much do you know?"

"Enough. Now if you'll excuse me I'll be going".

"No, haven't you heard? You belong to Kakuzu, and Kakuzu belongs to the Akatsuki, so through connection, you belong to me too", he says grinning.

"In your dreams", I say rolling my eyes.

"But it's true. Your father lost you in a bet to Kakuzu".

"Wouldn't be the first time", I mutter.  
"He's lost you before?"

"Well, since my father's dead and I don't have to obey his rules anymore. I'm not held to his word. It means nothing to me".

Hidan grabs me by the neck and lifts me up above the ground.

"As your Master, you have to obey me. So listen well, Little Bitch ".

"Go to Hell , Hidan", I says as I kick him (super hard) where the sun don't shine. He doubles over in pain and gasps at me.

"Little Bitch", he gasps.

And then I'm running. Fast and hard. Not normal speed, super speed. But then I realize something's wrong. I've been running past the same tree over and over.

"Genjutsu", I mutter.

I make a hand sign and dispel the illusion. And then once again I'm back in the clearing with the Akatsukis.

"I thought your genjustus were the best, Itachi. But this _girl _was able to dispel it easily", Kisame (Fish Stick) says.

And then I know it. I can't escape. I can't run, can't hide. I belong to them. I shudder and then decide to take myself out of this place as fast as I can. And so I do the stupidest thing I can think of. I look into Itachi's eyes. His eyes are blood red. Mesmerizing. And then I am somewhere else. I'm back _here_, on the table. Cold and filthy. My lungs are dry, I feel like screaming, but can't. I hear crying all around me, but I don't know from where. And then _he _enters the room, and I feel the knife against my cold skin…


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two: Meeting The Akatsuki**

I wake up to the gentle motion of being carried. I'm pretty groggy after being tortured through my sleep. I don't move a muscle; so afraid am I of being carried by Itachi. It takes me a bit to realize that Kakuzu is carrying me. I hear Hidan cursing at Kisame as they have a conversation on something. Itachi and Kakuzu are silent as usual.

"Hidan, it's your turn", Kakuzu says suddenly.

"No way, I'm not carrying the Little Bitch !" he protests.

I'm tossed through the air and I fear that Hidan isn't going to catch me. But he does (thank God). Of course, he doesn't carry me gently. But beggars can't be choosers. I let myself go back into a semiconscious state. Pretty soon I feel myself flying and I really want to yank my eyes open to see whom I'm going to. Please not Itachi, anybody but Itachi.

"She's as light as a feather", Kisame boasts, "And you think she's heavy?"

"No, just thought you'd like to", Kakuzu says.

"Yeah, we're not ' lightweights", Hidan adds.

Itachi says nothing.

Kisame isn't as rough as Hidan, but not as gentle as Kakuzu. His hands don't feel scaly like I thought they would. But they're definitely not soft. Once again, I let myself doze. But I never go any further then a doze and every time someone says something I listen closely. I figure that we've been walking for two hours and I also figure that I switch carriers every thirty minutes, which means…

"Hey, Itachi, you wanna carry her?" Kisame asks.

Oh My God… save me… let him say no… say no… please. And then I'm tossed through the air… to anyone but him, please. But new hands surround my waist and I know that my prayers have been denied. His touch is softer then Kakuzu's. It's like he thinks I'm a doll. But my torture/pleasure is short lived because I'm dumped on the ground about five minutes after his turn started.

"WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT FOR!" I scream.

Of course then everybody else turns around and looks at me.

"How long have you been awake?" Itachi asks.

"Well, Weasel, I've been awake for about two hours. Does that answer your question?"

"Yes".

I hear Kisame sniggering in the background.

"Aw, shut-up Fish Stick. You didn't even notice I was awake. Or did you just like holding me so much you didn't say anything?" I say.

Kisame blushes purple (blue skin + blush) and Hidan laughs.

"Same goes for you Princess Hidan", I say.

Then he blushes. The only two not blushing are Itachi and Kakuzu.

"I think that you can walk", Kakuzu says.

"And if I refuse?"

"We'll drag you".

"And if I try to run?"

"You don't want to know".

"That makes sense. I guess I'll walk".

With what little dignity I have I stand up and brush the dirt off of my clothes and reluctantly follow the Akatsukis. Of course, that doesn't mean I can't annoy them.

"Are we there yet?" I ask.

"For the millionth damn time, NO!" Hidan shouts.

"I'm hungry", I complain.

"So fuckin' what!"

"I'm tired, will you carry me Princess Hidan?"

" Hell no, Little Bitch".

My name is not Little Bitch. It's Mizuka Kohei, or Mizu or Zuka. NOT Little Bitch ".

"I don't give a fuck what your name is. You're our servant, we can call you what we want".

I stick my tongue out at him like the mature 15-year-old I am. He glares at me, and then gets an evil look in his eyes and I start to back away.

"No way", I say.

He comes toward me with the ferocity of a rabid cat and slaps me hard across the face. I don't cry. I don't even flinch. I just glare up at him with hatred, but not anger.

"All I did was stick my tongue out at you and you slap me?" I question.

"Just trying to prove a point. No one here is your friend, you belong to us", Hidan says.

"I don't need any friends; I've never had any", I say matter-of-factly.

Of course the entire group (minus Itachi) seems taken aback by that fact.

"You seem surprised. People are just going to die anyway, why get attached?"

"I think that you may almost be as psychotic as Itachi", Kisame stated.

"Well, isn't it like a shinobi rule that you don't show emotion? I think Itachi is a perfect example of this, he's as lifeless as a sock monkey".

Itachi didn't reply, he didn't even twitch a muscle. Of course after this comment, there were several snickers from the peanut gallery, but otherwise silence.

"Are we there yet?"

"Just a bit further", Kakuzu sighs.

"Are the other Akatsuki members as stupid as you or are they worse?"

No answer.

"You guys aren't any fun", I sigh.

"If you like fun, you'll love Tobi", Kisame

The others (minus Itachi) seemed to brighten up at the idea of me annoying Tobi.

"But Fish Stick, I love you", I whine.

He blushes purple (again) and Hidan laughs.

"I don't even think you're from the same species", he chuckles.

"But our love can overcome that. Right, Fish Stick?"

No answer from the blushing blue whale (shark). More laughter from Hidan. I decide to do something that may or may not get me killed. As stealthy as a panther I leap and give Fish Stick a gigantic hug. Of course, that's kind of hard to do what with his sword in the way. His face is bright, bright purple.

"Wow, Fish Stick, don't kill brain cells", I say.

Hidan is gasping for breath; he's laughing so hard.

"I know Kakuzu isn't that great at gambling, but he sure hit the jackpot on you!"

Did… Hidan… just give me a compliment? Without swearing?

"Um… thanks".

And then it starts to rain again. Once again, I notice that the Akatsuki cloaks work as perfect raincoats. I silently debate stealing Fish Sticks on the terms that he is a fish and fish need water, but he might kill me. Before I can plan any further, Kakuzu throws me a black clump of something. I unwrap the bundle and discover that it's a black Akatsuki cloak, minus the clouds.

"T-t-thanks", I chatter.

The cloak has a gigantic hood, which I put on. It's nice and cozy inside the slightly too large cloak.

After about six (one and a half) hours of walking, we apparently reach the Akatsuki hideout. Itachi goes up to a rock and it opens. We walk in, me in between Hidan and Kakuzu because they still don't trust me. We enter a dank, cold, slimy cave. Lovely, I must get the name of their decorator. But then Itachi dispels the Genjutsu and we're in a long hallway. The walls are black and red (wonder why?) and otherwise there is nothing. We pass doors and there is no distinction between one door and another. I don't even say anything, I'm slightly terrified.

I immediately can tell when we enter the living room because there's a wall sized T.V. and lots of leather sofas. There are three people in the room at the moment, but I only notice one because he's running (skipping?) toward us.

"Deidara, Sasori, look! They're back! And they brought someone with them!" the midget in the mask shouts.

The midget goes person-to-person attempting to give them hugs, but they move swiftly. Then he focuses his gaze on me.

"Can Tobi hug him?" the midget asks Hidan.  
"Go right ahead", Hidan says gleefully.

Oh no. Tobi skips toward me and wraps me in a lung-bursting hug. During this hug, he someone manages to rip the cloak off and it falls to the ground in slow motion. My only protection… gone.

"Oh, Tobi found a girl! Tobi thought that she was a boy, but Tobi found a girl!"

I take this short amount of time to observe the other two. There's a blonde guy and I seriously would think he was a girl if he wasn't staring at my chest. Perv. The other guy has red hair and isn't even staring at me. He's watching the T.V. Actually, he's not even watching it, he's channel flipping. How is channel flipping better then me?

"Why did you bring a _girl_ back with you", Mr. Red says, while not gazing away from the T.V.

"Kakuzu won her from her father. The stupid bastard gambled away everything", Hidan chuckles.

I whirl around and slap him as hard as I can. Really, really hard.

"My father may have been a dirty scumbag. But he's still my father and I won't have you speak of him that way. I still love him even though he lost me to you and before to the freak Oro-".

I stop myself before I go to far. Anger is my number one enemy and I only now realize that I'm angry. My eyes are glaring holes in Hidan. And I know that accidentally I've activated my stupid kekkai genkai. It doesn't have a name, but it's activated by anger. I can clearly see Hidan's chakra and I can also which element it is. Earth element; counter with lightning, my subconscious says. It only takes a second for me to deactivate the kekkai genkai. My blue eyes fade back to their normal gray. It appears that most people were distracted by Hidan's shocked face, then by my eyes. I glare around the room and the only eyes that meet mine are Itachi's and only for a second. Does he know my secret?

"You'll begin work tomorrow", Hidan says.

"I don't want to work for you", I say stubbornly.

"You don't have a fuckin' choice", says Hidan.

"Yes I do".

"No you don't".

"Do too".

"Do not".

"Shut up, you guys sound like an old married couple", Mr. Red says.

"We do not", Hidan and I say at the same time.

"Point proven", Mr. Red says.

"She's going to be working for us, yeah?" asks Mr. Perv.

"No-"

"Yes you are", says Kakuzu.

"Though you can torture me all you like, and you outnumber me, the answer will still be no", I say.

"Can I have her then?" Mr. Red asks.

"Have me? Fuck no!"

"She'd make a pretty puppet. I wonder how many jutsus she can do?" he asks.

"Like I'd tell you", I huff.

"Oh, we'll find out eventually", Mr. Red says.

"I might as well kill myself", I mutter.

"What was that?" Kakuzu says.

"Nothing, _Master_", I say sarcastically.

"We're all your Masters", Kakuzu says.

"You wish", I mutter.

"Rule #1: No muttering".

"Okay", I mutter.

I receive a hard slap on my face from Mr. Red.

"Yeah, yeah", I say loudly.

"Good. Rule #2: Do not go into our rooms unless you're ordered to".

"Whose room is that one?" I say, pointing to the door right across the hall.

"Itachi's" Kakuzu says.

"The one next to it?"

"Hidan's".

I walk right up to the door, open it, step inside, and step out. Then I stick my tongue out at Hidan. Another slap on the face.

"Rule #3: You'll cook and clean for us. Do not try to poison our food or try any funny stuff".

"Like this?" I say while holding Fish Stick's hand.

He's blushing the extreme shade of purple.

"Yes, like that", says Kakuzu.

Another slap from Hidan.

"Where's my room going to be?" I ask.

"We'll all show you", Kakuzu says.

Which translates into, **"Don't try any funny stuff or we'll all kill you".**

"Whatever", I mutter.

"Rule #1", Mr. Red reminds me.

"WHATEVER!" I yell in his ear.

"New rule. Rule #4: No yelling".

"Okay", I agree.

Yelling hurts my throat. We walk down the extremely long hallway. There are a lot of twists and turns. Then we walk down an extremely long staircase. Is everything here extreme? Extremely long halls, extremely huge TV's, extremely long stairs, extremely temperamental guys, extremely hot guys. Hot? Where the did that come from? These guys are not hot. They are far from hot. They're ugly. No, they're fugly.

Most of the guys are staring at me, and it's only then that I realize that we're standing in front of a door. More correctly; my door. Also, I've been staring at the door for about five minutes without saying or doing anything.

"Are you going to go in or not?" Kakuzu asks.

"Yeah, yeah", I say.

I push open the door and walk in. There is a plain twin bed with crimson comforter and black sheets. What's with the obsession with black and red? There also is a desk, dresser, and another door leading somewhere. I open it up and look inside. Bathroom. I sigh and run toward my bed and lay down.

"Can you guys leave now?" I ask.

"What are you going to do?" asks Mr. Red.

"What do you think? Sleep".

"But you slept almost all the way here", Kakuzu says.

"No I didn't. I was awake most of the time, but you didn't know it. Remember?"

"Whatever", Kakuzu says, "I'm going to go count my money".

The rest of the guys leave the room and go off in separate directions. I sigh and lay down on the bed. I have to admit that this bed is extremely (there we go again) comfortable. I close my eyes and drift off. And while I dream I come up with a plan. A plan to escape.


	3. Chapter 3

**The Ultimate Temptation**

When I wake up there is a tray of food on my desk. I wander over and look at it. Ramen and some dango. There also is a cup of steaming tea. I dump the food down the toilet and flush. Then I lie back down and sleep. When I wake up the tray is gone and there is a jug of water on the desk in case I get thirsty. I ignore it and turn over and go back to sleep.

In the morning, my hair is a mess. I lazily yawn and pad over to the bathroom. I turn the shower's heat to high and jump (not literally) into the sauna. The water immediately burns my back, but I ignore the pain. I just turn the water higher. And when the water goes cold, I just stand there.

_The water was cold there too._

_The table was cold too._

_So was the knife._

_Cold, everything was cold._

_But his smile was the coldest thing I'd ever seen._

I slam my head against the desk over and over again when I get out of the shower. Why was I thinking about him? What brought this on? I sigh (what's with the sighing?) and lay down on the bed. Sleep doesn't come easy.

"Little Bitch, you need to fix breakfast. We're starving", Hidan says.

"Like I said, my name's Mizuka. And no, I will not fix your breakfast", I sigh.

"What was that?"

"You heard me".

He picks me up by the neck and slams me into the wall. He squeezes my neck hard and I don't try to breathe.

I glare at him squarely in the eyes and say, "You're such a bitch, Hidan".

He bashes my head into the wall over and over again and then slaps me over and over in the face. Then he pulls out a kunai and starts scratching something on my arm. He slams me onto the floor and walks toward the door.

"Now you really belong to me, _Mizuka_", he spits.

I start to get up, but fall back down. I silently groan and try again to get up. This cycle of trying to get up and falling down continues. I finally get up and walk into the bathroom. I stare in astonishment in the mirror. What the did he do to me? There are angry red welts on my face and I have a huge bump on the back of my head. But the worst thing is what's scratched on my arm. _Hidan_. The wrote his name on me. His name. _Now you really belong to me, Mizuka._ Grrr. I could kill him right now. I hate him, I'm… I'm angry. I glare into the mirror and observe the dark blue eyes staring back at me. My eye technique is accessing myself. I have no precise chakra type, so my eyes are confused. But if I focus on one I can see it precisely. I have more water-type chakra then any other. Then I have earth, fire, lightning, and then wind. Maybe that's why _he_ chose me. The fact that my chakra is very versatile is a useful thing. That and having an immense amount of chakra to go along with it.

I don't bother cleaning up the bloodstains on my body I just go lay down on the floor and close my eyes. I feel the minor wounds start to heal as I concentrate on them. I don't have enough energy to heal the others so I drift off into happy dreams.

"Mizu is hurt! Mizu is hurt! Tobi must get help! But whom should Tobi tell? Tobi will tell Kakuzu! Yes, Tobi will. Tobi is such a good boy to help Mizu!"

. Now Tobi is going to go tell someone. And that will make Hidan mad. Yay, more getting the crap beat out of me. Minutes later, Tobi and someone else enter the room.

"Tobi came in to give breakfast to Mizu and she was on the floor. Tobi didn't see who did it, but Tobi is very mad at whoever did it!"

Tobi mad? Impossible. Tobi couldn't hurt a fly. How could he hurt Hidan?

I feel someone's hands lift me up gently. Kakuzu's hands. Ow, it hurts so much. Kakuzu's hands gently probe my head and assess the damage there.

"Looks like she healed the minor wounds before she passed out", he says, "And I don't even need to guess who did this. _He wrote his name on her_", Kakuzu hisses.

"Who did it? Tobi wants to know!"

"Can't you read Tobi? Hidan scratched his name on her arm. He gets so easily pissed off".

"Oh, Tobi will go tell Hidan that Tobi is mad at him. And Tobi will make Hidan say sorry to Mizu. Bad Hidan, bad", Tobi says.

"Tobi I don't think that's a good idea", Kakuzu says.

But Kakuzu is too late. Tobi has already skipped (it's impossible for Tobi to stomp) out the door and gone searching for Hidan. From the living room we hear:

"Tobi doesn't like you Hidan. You hurt Mizu. Bad Hidan. You need to say sorry", Tobi commands.

"Shut the up Tobi. She disobeyed me, so I punished her", Hidan snarls.

Do I detect a hint of glee in his voice? Yep, that's glee all right. Die, Hidan, die.

"But you hurt her really bad. She can't get up", Tobi whines.

"Good, that means I taught her a lesson", Hidan says.

"What'd you do this time?" I hear Mr. Red say.

"Hidan hurt Mizu. Hidan is such a bad boy", Tobi explains.

"He hurt her?" Mr. Red asks.

"He hurt her head and he wrote his name on her".

"You can read?" Mr. Red asks.

"No, Kakuzu told Tobi. But he did write his name on her".

"Kakuzu's with her?" Hidan asks.

"Tobi was a good boy and went to get him".

"Fuck you Tobi, you don't need to get anyone else involved", Hidan curses.

"But everyone has already heard you screaming about it", Tobi says.

I'm imagining Hidan slapping his hand to his face in stupidity. Way to go, Tobi!

Kakuzu picks me up and lays me down on the bed.

"He can be a real pain at times", Kakuzu murmurs.

Kakuzu leaves me to my own thoughts. I drift into rocky dreams.

About a week had passed since the Hidan accident and my plan has been successful. I just have to get beat up so that I don't have to work. I also haven't been eating, but I gave up on flushing it. I just leave it sitting there. Of course Tobi notices this and tells people. But I'm pretending to be asleep when he comes, so they think I'm just sleeping through everything.

Another week's passed and nothing new to report.

I wake up and stretch, eyes closed. I look at the ramen bowl and dango on my tray with distaste. It's been the same thing since day one. I sigh and lazily run my fingers through my now super long hair (another extreme!) and pad to the bathroom for my shower. When I come out someone's in the room.

"Shit", I curse.

"So you haven't been sleeping, you've been avoiding", Itachi observes.

"What's it to you?" I ask.

"And you've been getting yourself beat up by Hidan on purpose".

"So?"

"You're just avoiding work. Why?"

"Why does it matter? I already told you I wouldn't work for you".

"Because it doesn't matter what you think, we haven't told you to think".

His emotionless face is pissing me off. Grrr.

"I don't need you to tell me what to think", I say.

"I can see that. You still refuse to eat?"

"Yes".

"I don't want to force feed you, but I will if I have to".

"Fine, I'll eat".

I pick up the tray and curl up in the corner of my bed (furthest place from Itachi) and eat. Itachi's eyes never leave me for a second. He's making sure I eat it all. When the bowl and plate is clean and the tea has been drunk, I shove it at him.

"There, happy?"

"For now", he says.

He picks up the tray and leaves the room. I hurry into the bathroom and puke up all of the food. Did he think I'd let him win that easily? Foolish Little Weasel.

Throughout the day, Itachi brings me food, I eat it as he watches, he leaves, and I puke it up. What a happy cycle! Days pass like this and I'm getting bored of this room. I hear a knock on the door and know that it's him. He walks into the room when I don't answer, gives me the tray, and sits down on his usual chair.

"What's been going on?" I ask, "Sitting here in this room doesn't give me much information".

"Nothing a servant needs to know".

"I was wrong about you Itachi, you're not a sock puppet. You're much worse. You're an enigma. A question that cannot be answered".

Itachi says nothing. I eat the food unhappily, give the tray to Itachi, and puke the food up. I wish there was something to do besides eat and sleep. Not that I'm thinking about working for the Akatsuckers. I sigh and sit down on my bed, gazing at the floor. Then it hits me. I can draw! I pull out a kunai knife I stole from Tobi (why they would let him have knives, I'll never know) and start to draw.

Minutes pass, then hours, and then days. I've been drawing a picture under the bed so that the Akatsuckers won't see it. I've been drawing a flower for each element. And I spend about a day on each flower, making sure that they are perfect.

I was working on the fire flower, scratching the shading onto each petal flame when I heard the door open. !

"So this is what you've been hiding", Itachi says smugly.

"What're you talking about?" I lie.

"Those drawings hidden under your bed".

"What drawings?"

"Move", he commands.

I sit down on the bed.

"I said move".

"I did move".

"Move away from the bed".

"Whatever".

He pushes the bed away from the wall and gazes at the flowers. I hadn't finished the fire flower, so it was partially unfinished.

"Finish it", he commands.

I sigh and get down on my hands and knees. I pick up my kunai brush and start finishing it up.

"So how'd you know?" I ask, trying to make small talk.

"Your eyes".

"My eyes?"

"There was something in them. A secret sort of glee".

"That probably gave it away".

He nodded his head curtly and I continued sketching. When I was done, I stood up, brushed my hands on my pants, and observed my work. It was possibly the best thing I had done yet.

"I'll be back", Itachi says suddenly.

Moments later, I hear arguing in the hall.

"Art is something that is everlasting", I hear Mr. Red argue.

"No, art is something that lasts only a second", Perv says.

"Will you two shut up?" Itachi sighs.

Why's he bringing them here? All three of them enter my room. The room immediately feels smaller. I back into the farthest corner I can get in like the timid rabbit I am. Mr. Red and Perv spend hours looking at my sketching. Then they start arguing again.

"Shut up!" Itachi and I say at the same time.

Mr. Red and Perv turn towards me.

"What do you believe art is?" Mr. Red asks me.

"Huh?" I say.

"What do you think art is, un?" Perv says.

"Um… pictures, sculptures, stuff like that", I answer timidly.

"No, do you think it lasts a long time-" Mr. Red says.

"Or that it disappears in a second? Perv finishes.

"Um, both?"

"Both?" they say in unison.

"Yeah, um, if art lasts a long time then more people can appreciate it. But if art lasts only a second then it's more valuable. Everlasting art is less valuable and short lived art is less appreciated", I explain quickly.

They both stare at my face with questionable looks on their faces. Itachi's doing his enigma thing.

"You are the first person to say that", Mr. Red says.

"I am? I thought the answer was pretty obvious".

They both look at each other with a questionable look on their faces.

"Thanks", Mr. Red says, "That is a really good sketch".

"Yeah, it really is, un", Perv says, "And thanks, un".

"Your welcome?"

They walk out the room quieter then when they came in. Itachi sits down in his usual chair and points to the tray of food he brought in when he first got here.

"Eat", he commands.

"What are their names again?" I ask.

"The red-haired one is Sasori and the blonde one that looks like a girl is Deidara".

"I think that he looks like a girl too. Maybe we should cut his hair". **Evil grin**

Itachi doesn't say anything. I eat the rest of my food quietly and repeat the procedures. When I come out of the bathroom, I put my bed back and go to sleep.

Another week passes like this and I realize that I've been here for a month. I find out (from yelling outside my door) that the Leader has forbidden Hidan from coming in my room. Yeah!

When I come out of the bathroom a couple of days later, I walk into someone. I slowly lift my head up to look in his eyes and I shudder at their crimson depths.

"How long have you been doing this?" Itachi asks.

"Since you started making me eat", I answer.

"Smart, but I figured you were doing something".

"You always figure something about me".

"Why don't you just give up?"

"Because I don't like being a caged bird. And that's what I feel like here".

"I'll be back tomorrow. And I'll make sure you eat it all".

"Whatever", I sigh.

there goes my plan. But as I drift to sleep, my mind comes up with another plan. And this one goes into effect soon…

I wake up all jazzed and ready for action. When Itachi comes with breakfast I just think he's going to watch me eat more closely. But no, he force-feeds me. Great. He stays for about an hour after I've eaten, probably to make sure I digest the food.

This continues on for four more days. Then when he comes with lunch, my plan hatches. He moves close to me and starts to force-feed me. As he goes back to refill the chopsticks, I summon my chakra to my fist. When he turns back toward me, I punch him in the stomach. Huffing slightly, I jump off of my bed and run out of the room. I create a Shadow Clone and make her run in the opposite direction of where I'm going. I run up the long staircase, down the long hallway, and stop. ! At the end of the hallway, Hidan is glaring at me.

"Trying to escape, ?!" Hidan says.

I ignore him and run into the living room. Unfortunately, who should be there but Sasori, Deidara, Kisame, and Kakuzu?

"Shit!" I yell running to the entrance to the cave.

And there… at the end of my almost escape… is Itachi.

"Fuck!" I curse, "Move it, you Weasel!"

Itachi says nothing, but moves his finger pointing behind me. And then I'm trapped. I'm surrounded by Itachi's. Shadow Clones or a Genjutsu? And if it's a Genjutsu how do I get out of it? I make the ultimate decision.

I summon all of my anger at Akatsuki to my eyes. And activate my kekkai genkai. Yes, it's a Genjutsu. If I have to burn the Akatsuki's base to get out of it, I will.

"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"

A giant fireball forms and I launch it at a group of Itachi's. They all poof.

"Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!"

I launch these at another group of Itachi's. More poofs.

My eyes are burning at the smoke from the building and because I've never used them this much. I force my eyes open and stare at each group of clones. I can't tell them apart, the chakra is distributed evenly.

I gather up my chakra to my chakra points. I'm going to do _this_.

"Fire Style: Fire Rotation Jutsu!"

I spin around and transform the chakra coming off my body into fire. All of the clones disappear. There's only one problem. There's nobody else around.

Where could he be? Above, behind, or under me? Or is he invisible? No, he's not. I'd be able to see him with my kekkai genkai.

"Katsu!"

Something blows up near my face and I fly into a wall. Not a wall. Someone's arms. More precisely, Kisame's arms.

"Don't make me kill you Kisame", I growl.

"I don't think you can", he says smugly.

"I can try. Fire Style: Fire Rotation Jutsu!"

"Not again!"

I spin in his arms and fire emits from my skin. Burning, everything is on fire.

"Katsu!" Deidara yells.

I escape the exploding thing this time and back into a corner. I'm trapped. Like a bird in a cage. I see Kisame on the ground and Deidara huffing not to far from me. Itachi is nowhere to be seen.

"I don't want to hurt you too", I whisper to Deidara.

"Then stop fighting".

"Then let me escape", I reply.

"Can't", he says.

He reaches into a pouch on his thigh and pulls out some clay. He sculpts two birds and sends them at me. I dodge the first, but the second gets a little too close for comfort.

"Katsu!"

My eyes access Deidara and I come up with my counter-attack.

"Lightning Rotation Jutsu!"

This time bolts of electricity come off my body as I spin. I direct the attack on Deidara and he falls easily. As Deidara falls, I barely escape an attack from Hidan. His gigantic scythe barely misses my shoulder by centimeters.

"Little Bitch , you're a pretty good fighter".

"And all you have is that pathetic scythe".

He growls at me and I easily dodge the scythe. As he lunges forward, I duck under his attacking arm and stab his chest, right where his heart should be.

"Chakra Scalpel!" I say, slashing my hand across his heart.

He spits blood and some of it lands on my face.

"Fool", he spits.

I feel something stab me in the back, pinning me onto Hidan. We seem to fall to the ground in slow motion. I grab at the thing stuck in my back and painfully pull it out. It's a katana and I look around for whoever stabbed me. I spy Kakuzu standing about six feet away from me. I ignore him and turn back to Hidan. I slice his head off of his shoulders and pick it up. I then throw it away from me and face Kakuzu.

"He's immortal", Kakuzu says.

"Doesn't matter, it makes me feel better", I growl.

He sighs and takes off his cloak in a flurry. His body is covered with stitches. He carefully removes one and holds it loosely in his hand. What is he up to? He throws the thread at me and I dodge it quickly. The thread then somehow follows me and wraps around my body. I feel a slicing pain and I realize that the thread is cutting me up. I start to spin once again.

"Wind Rotation Jutsu!"

The threads are cut to ribbons and I stare at Kakuzu calmly.

"What now?" I ask him.

He loosens another thread and sends it at me. I weave in and out while dodging the thread as I make my way toward Kakuzu.

"Chakra Scalpel!" I say while slicing his arm.

He should loose all capability of moving his arm and he does. I slice up his other arm and steal some kunai from his own pouch and slice him up with those too. By now I'm drenched in blood and Kakuzu is incapable of moving. I step away from his body and I hear a chattering behind me. I turn around to see what's chattering and I see a puppet moving toward me at an incredible speed. I barely dodge the puppet and it launches an attack of senbon at me. I see Sasori in the distance controlling the puppet with chakra strings. The puppet moves toward me and I dodge once again.

"Fire Style: Fireball Jutsu!"

The fireball hits the puppet and it goes up in flames. I move stealthily toward Sasori and then I can't move. He's controlling me with chakra strings. I force myself to amp up my chakra and I move toward him. It takes slightly longer then I would have liked to get close to him. I pick the katana I had been stabbed with off of the floor and slash Sasori with it. He dodges the attack easily and stabs my arm with something. I fall to the ground.

"This kunai has been poisoned with my own special poison. If you manage to escape you'll die soon enough".

I stab him through the head. He's made of wood. He made himself into a puppet. I pick up the bloody katana and start moving toward the entrance. And then I feel an incredible amount of chakra enter the room. Itachi or another Akatsuki? I keep moving toward the entrance, ignoring the massive chakra wielder.

"From what I know, you're our servant", a not-familiar voice says.

"I'm nobody's servant".

"That may be, but you've injured my men. And I think you owe me".

"I don't owe you anything", I state.

"But you still belong to Kakuzu, seeing as how he's not dead. And Kakuzu belongs to the Akatsuki-"

"I've heard this already", I complain.

"And the Akatsuki belongs to me", the voice states.

This voice is the Leader? This person is in charge of the Akatsuki? I slowly turn around to look at the Leader of the Akatsuki. He's wearing the traditional Akatsuki cloak; he has orange-ish hair, weird circled eyes, and his face is covered in piercings. He's hot, like the rest of the Akatsuki guys. His chakra feels immense and I shudder at the feeling of it.

"Just let me go, I won't tell anyone about you", I whisper.

"You belong to us, and either you work for us or you die. And I don't think you would like it if you had to die".

"Who are you?"

"As I already said, I am the leader of the Akatsuki. I am known as Leader or simply as Rei".

"Fine then Rei, I won't leave. But I won't be your servant forever. Seven years at the most".

"Fine, but I can dismiss you at any moment. And for you that means death".

"Deal", I agree.

What am I doing? I just bargained myself back into slavery. But there's something about Rei that just makes you want to agree with whatever he says.

"Now, your first duty as Akatsuki's servant is to clean up the mess and heal the members. Itachi, you can come out now".

Itachi melts out of the shadows, smirks at me, and asks, "Yes, Leader?"

"Walk with me", Rei commands.

Rei nods his head at me and then walks off with Itachi. Why that little Weasel- GRRR! I release my kekkai genkai and I suddenly become very tired. I heal my most life threatening wounds. I put out the flames with water jutsus and then go to take care of the Akatsuker members. I heal Kakuzu first because his wounds are the easiest. Then I go take care of Sasori, Deidara, and Kisame. I don't really want to heal Hidan, but I don't have to. Kakuzu is sewing his head back on and is listening to his cursing.

"Little Bitch , do you realize how annoying it is to have your head cut off?"

"No, seeing as how I've never had my head cut off".

"Would you like to try?" he asks gleefully.

"No thanks", I sigh.

I go looking for Deidara and I find him lying down on the couch. I sit down on the floor next to the couch and lay my head down on his chest. And then I can't help it; I start crying.

"I'm so sorry, Deidara. I just lost it. I went berserk. I shouldn't have used the stupid kekkai genkai. I shouldn't have fought. I shouldn't-"

He raises his hand and lays it on top of my hair. He starts running his fingers through my hair.

"Shhh, it's okay. You did what you had to to escape, yeah", he says.

I silently sob into his cloak as he rubs his hands through my hair.

"That feels nice", I say, "My mother used to do this when I was little".

"What happened to her?" Deidara asks.

"My father also lost her in the same bet he lost me in the first time. She, however, didn't survive".

"I'm sorry, yeah".

"Why do you do that?"

"Do what, un?"

"That. You always add yeah or un at the end of your sentences".

"I do?"

I nod my head and then I started to get up. But I fall back down.

"I think I overdid it", I sigh.

"You were pretty intense, yeah. I think even Itachi was scared".

"Itachi, scared? You're crazy".

"No, I'm serious. You were very scary, yeah. The minutes Kisame went down we all sort of freaked out, un. And then I went down, and the bodies kept piling up", he grins, "That was some amazing fighting, yeah. The way you switched techniques so quickly. You weren't even using hand seals, were you?"

"No, that's part of my stupid kekkai genkai".

"Doesn't your kekkai genkai have a name?"

"No. It's not even a real kekkai genkai. It's a fake one I guess. It was sort of implanted into my body when I was seven".

"Implanted?"

"The first guy I was lost to was insane. He preformed all these experiments on me because my chakra is versatile. He was trying to see if kekkai genkais could be created and then passed on from generation to generation. I was a success, but he doesn't know that. My father bought me back before the results sunk in".

"Didn't you tell your father this, un?"

"No, he was traumatized already about my mother's death. I told him that she had committed suicide. It was happier then what really happened. Like I'd tell him she was abused, raped while I was watching, and sadistically tortured?"

"That guy sounds pretty messed up".

"He is", I say.

Suddenly my body starts burning and twitching. I gasp and curl up into a little ball on the floor.

"Mizuka, what's wrong?" Deidara says.

"Sasori…poison", I mutter before I black out.


	4. Chapter 4

**Shower Slip-up Shower Slip-up**

I wake up in a room. I'm suspecting that it'll be my room, but it's not.

"W-where am I?" I ask.

"My room", a voice says.

"S-Sasori?"

"Yes. The poison hurts doesn't it?" he asks.

"Yeah, where'd you find that stuff?"

"I made it".

"You made it?"

"Yes".

"Well, that hurt like Hell. No worse, I've been through Hell already and that didn't feel like Hell".

"I see you really are better. Your sarcasm is back".

"Whoop-de-do".

"MIZU!"

"Damn", Sasori and I both curse.

Tobi jumps up on the bed and gives me a lung-crushing hug.

"MIZU TOBI WAS SO WORRIED! TOBI THOUGHT MIZU WAS GOING TO DIE! TOBI EVEN PRAYED TO JASHIN WITH HIDAN THAT YOU WOULD GET BETTER! BUT HIDAN SAID THAT PRAYING TO JASHIN FOR GOOD THINGS IS AN OXYMORON AND THAT IT WOULDN'T WORK, BUT IT DID-"

"Tobi shut up or I'll kill you", Sasori mutters darkly.

Tobi immediately quiets down and stops crushing my lungs.

"Thanks, Sasori".

"How come you didn't escape?" Sasori asked suddenly, "We didn't want to ask Itachi because that would be like asking to die".

"Rei and I made a bargain", I answered.

"You met The Leader?"

I nod my head and sink back into the (extremely!) fluffy pillows.

"How long have I been out?"

"Five days, give or take".

"What!" I shout, jumping out of the covers and landing hard on my feet.

I fall down to the floor because I got up too quickly. Sasori helps me up and sets me back down on the bed.

"I have to get to work. I shouldn't have slept. I'm so far behind. Rei's going to kill me. I need to get to-"

Sasori puts his finger to my lips.

"Please shut up. You need to rest. You exhausted your body in that battle. And if you're going to work, you need a shower first because you really stink".

"Gee, thanks. Can I go back to my room?"

"No, we don't trust you that much".

"Then can I use yours?"

"Mine's broken since Tobi had a little "accident" in it".

"Then whose can I use?"

"My next door neighbor's", he grins.

"Thanks, Sasori. Can you leave my clothes on the bed for when I get out?"

"Sure thing", he grins.

"Thanks again Sasori".

He helps me to the next-door neighbor's room.

"I'll bring your clothes before you get out. Lock the door".

"Because you guys are perverts right?"

"Exactly".

He leaves the room and I walk into the bathroom. A guy definitely lives here. There are razors on the counter and the cap is not on the toothpaste. Then I realize that the bedroom was pretty clean for a guy. Oh well. I strip and walk into the blazing inferno. Hot water washes away the battle dirt and blood and all traces of sickness. Clean! I take a long time washing my hair; it's hugely long now. It's like down to my butt! I finish up with my shower and wrap a red towel around me. I unlock the bathroom door and walk out into the room. And then my face turns bright red.

There… sitting on the bed… is Itachi.

And… he's holding… my clothes.

With what little dignity I have, I walk toward him and snatch the clothes away from him. I walk back into the bathroom and slam the door. But before it closes, I see his smug little expression in the mirror. ! I dress as slowly as I can, hoping that he'll be gone when I come out. I change into my ninja outfit. I'm wearing a black and red outfit (it's a good thing I like those colors!). I'm wearing a black with one red stripe skirt with shorts, a black tank top, and a weird red long sleeve half sweater thingy. I think I look ready to kick some ass . I step out of the bathroom happily, my hopes up, and then I stop. Itachi's still in the room.

"Hello, Weasel", I say coldly.

"You look well today Mizuka", he retorts.

"Thank you, so do you".

"Hey Itachi, Mizuka's-"

Sasori stops when he sees the two of us glaring daggers at each other.

"I'll just be going now".

"Did you plan this?" I ask Sasori.

"No, I was just hoping that he wouldn't be in here when you came out".

"He wasn't. What were _you_ doing?" I hiss.

"Enjoying the view", Itachi says smugly.

I'm sure lightning bolts are blasting from my eyes into his, but he doesn't seem to notice.

"Thanks for allowing me to use your bathroom", I say coldly.

"Your welcome", Itachi returns.

I walk out of the room with Sasori.

"Seriously, what went on in there?" he asks.

"I told you the truth, nothing".

"Are you sure? You were burning his eyes with hatred".

"Good".

I walk back toward my room, but Sasori stops me.

"Oh yeah, The Leader wants to see you".

"Me?"

"Yes, you".

"Thanks. Where is his room?"

"All the way down the hall, door on the left".

"Okay".

I walk down the hallway, my heart beating a thousand miles per hour. Why does Rei want me? I knock on the door.

"Come in", Rei says.

I walk in the room silently and bow my head to Rei.

"You called for me, Master?"

"No need for formalities Mizuka".

"Yes… Rei?"

"I'm here to tell you you're punishment for trying escape".

"Punishment?"

He nods his head solemnly, " Rule #5: No escaping. As punishment for breaking this rule you will be chained to certain members when they go out on missions".

"Chained?"

"Yes, literally. But while you are here, you are free to roam. However at night you will move from room to room, so that you don't try to escape".

"I'll be sleeping with them?"

"In the same room, not the same bed, unless it's consensual".

"Ew, gross. I'm only fifteen!"

"And most of the members are around the same age as you, just a bit older".

"Who do I get to spend the night with tonight?" I ask.

"Tobi".

"What!?" I screech.

"No excuses. You spend the night with Tobi tonight. The only person that you will never spend the night with is Zetsu and that's only because he'd eat you".

"Eat me?" I squeak.

"He's a cannibal. And speaking of Zetsu…"

A weird form started to shift out of the walls and I just about screamed. This dude was black and white with yellow eyes. He also happened to have green hair and weird Venus fly trap leaves on his head.

"Are those for real!?" I ask.

"Yes they are", Rei says, "Zetsu, meet Mizuka Kohei, our servant girl. She's off limits, so no eating her".

"**But she looks so tasty**/ We should listen to Leader/ **Who cares what leader thinks?** / Leader will be angry if we eat her/ **tasty so tasty**/ not tasty, not tasty/ **sweet, young, delicious**/ bad, bad. Mustn't eat/".

"Zetsu had two personalities, in case you can't tell. You may leave now, Mizuka", Rei commands.

"Thank you, Leader".

I walk out of the hall and run toward my room. I pass by Deidara on my bed (why's he here?) and run into the bathroom. Then I proceed to heave my lungs out. When that's all done, I go back out to see Deidara.

"You met Zetsu, didn't you?" he asked.

"Yeah. He wanted to eat me".

"That's what he says to everybody when he first meets them, yeah. He's not so bad. At least, not the White Zetsu".

"So White Zetsu's the nice one and Black Zetsu's the bad one?"

"Yeah".

"Why are you here, Deidara?"

"Sasori told me you were awake. I wanted to make sure you were okay, yeah".

"That's sweet Deidara. I'm hungry", I realize.

"Come on, un. I'll take you to the kitchen".

We walk to the kitchen. When we enter Kakuzu is at the table counting money, Hidan is wolfing down a hunk of meat, and Itachi is just standing in a corner. Every one lifts up their eyes when I enter the room with Deidara. And then… out of nowhere… jumps Tobi!

"Get the fuck off of me, Tobi!"

"Zuka is okay! Zuka is okay! And Zuka gets to spend the night with Tobi! Tobi and Zuka will sleep together and Tobi is very happy!"

I must be blushing, but I'm not the only one.

"What the fuck is going on?" Hidan asks.

"I'm being punished by Leader", I answer, "I get to spend the night with one of you every night and when you go on missions I have to go too. Why me?"

Everyone (minus Itachi) seems happy about that, especially Tobi. I manage to shrug him off and I walk over to the (extremely!) large fridge and I open it up. Inside there is a lot of meat, all bloody and cold (ew!), some moldy fruit, and some weird liquid spilling out of the icebox. I quickly close the fridge and I look at each of the Akatsukis in turn.

"That thing is a nightmare".

"Well if only the maid will clean it up then it will not be a nightmare", Kakuzu says, never looking away from his money.

"The "Maid" will get to it as soon as she eats something", I say.

I open up the pantry and discover roaches and ramen. I grab a cup of ramen and shrug a roach off of my arm.

"You guys are supposed to be an evil organization, and you are ruled by roaches?"

"The maid is really behind on her chores", Kakuzu says.

"The "Maid" will get on that too".

I put hot water in the cup of noodles and try to patiently wait out the three minutes. I'm tapping my foot against the tile floor and it's annoying the other Akatsukis.

"Will you stop that tapping?" Hidan asks.

"Maybe if you ask politely".

"Please, Bitch".

I sigh and stop tapping my foot. And then the three minutes is up. Yeah! I grab my ramen and start slurping away. It burns my tongue! I'm so shocked that I drop the hot ramen on the person I was walking by. Who happened to be Hidan.

"What the fuck? What the fuck did you do to me you Bitch!?"

"Sorry, it was an accident!"

"You probably did that on purpose, you whore!"

"Accident!"

He turns around, still looking scary with noodles in his hair, and slaps me across the face.

I stand there my face blank and say, "Accident".

Hidan bursts from his chair and grabs my neck and pushes me into the wall. He squeezes my neck really hard and I gasp, "Accident".

He snarls at that like a rabid animal and squeezes harder. Then he pulls out a kunai and draws up my sleeve on my left arm. Glinting faintly in the light, you could barely see the name Hidan. He reopened the scars and rewrote his name.

"You still belong to me", he says darkly.

Then in a moment of serendipity, Kakuzu and Deidara pull him away from me. I'm gasping for air and I fall down hard on the floor. I hear Hidan curse and then stop away to his room.

"I… just… attract trouble… don't I?" I say to the room.

Darkness greets me happily.


	5. Chapter 5

**Tobi the Bad Boy?**

I wake up in- who else's room- but Tobi's? He's curled up next to me like a kitten and is snoring quietly. He's still wearing his orange mask and I want to see what he looks like underneath it. My hand moves toward his face ever so slowly… and Tobi suddenly grabs my hand. I gasp and about have a heart attack, but then Tobi makes a loud snort and turns over, still holding my hand.

"Fuck you Akatsuki bastards", I curse.

I lay awake for an hour or so before I decide it's time for Tobi to wake up. I start push him off the bed, hoping he'll let go of my hand, but he doesn't. He just rolls off of the bed, taking me along with him. I land on top of him and his hand sneaks around my back and grips me tightly, I can't breathe. And then the door opens…

"Mizuka, Tobi time to get up-" Kisame says as he walks in the room.

And then he spots us. It's only then that I realize that I'm in an awkward position. I blush a deep shade of puce. Kisame is also blushing purple.

"This isn't what it looks like", I explain.

"Are you sure about that? "Cause from where I'm standing it looks pretty interesting".

"Just shut up and help me. He won't let me go".

"Tobi we're making triple chocolate pancakes!" Kisame shouts.

Tobi jumps up, knocking me over, and starts skipping around the room.

"Pancakes! Pancakes! Tobi loves pancakes!" he sings.

"Tobi shut up", Kisame and I say in unison.

"Mizu, why are you on the floor?"

"Um… I fell off".

"Mizu are you okay? Tobi didn't mean to push you off".

"You didn't Tobi, I always fall off the bed".

"No you don't. When Tobi watched you sleep when you weren't eating, Mizu never fell off the bed!"

"You were watching me?"

"Tobi watched you every night to make sure you were okay", Tobi says happily.

Tobi apparently can't tell that I'm furious, because he goes on describing my sleeping habits.

"Thanks for watching me, Tobi", I say with fake happiness.

"Tobi is a good boy!"

"Yes, Tobi is a good boy", I agree with fake enthusiasm.

We walk out of the room holding hands and my plan has started. We walk into the kitchen just as Kisame is apparently done telling his story. The entire Akatsuki organization is staring at us in astonishment (minus Itachi, Rei, Zetsu, and Tobi- who doesn't know what the Hell is going on).

"Good morning guys! How'd you sleep? Tobi and I slept great!"

Their astonished faces change from astonished to shocked. I walk over to kitchen and start gathering materials.

"What are you doing?" Kakuzu asks.

"Making triple chocolate pancakes", I answer while giving Kisame a wink.

Tobi joyfully skips around the room, repeatedly singing the pancake song as I make the pancakes. When they're done I give Tobi five, and distribute the rest among the Akatsukis.

"Yummy!" Tobi says joyfully.

I move over to Tobi and wipe a chocolate smudge fro his face. Then I give him a kiss on the cheek and smirk at the, quickly-going-insane-that-such-a-cute-girl-as-me-would-fall-for-a-klutz-like-Tobi, Akatsukis.

"Thanks Zuka".

"No, _thank you_".

I am enjoying this way too much. Who knew I could make the Akatsukis squirm this easily (minus Itachi)?

After our awkward breakfast, Deidara corners me in my room.

"You didn't really _sleep with him _did you, yeah?" he asks, worry all over his face.

"Why would I sleep with Tobi? And why are you thinking such perverted thoughts?"

"N-no reason", he stutters.

"That's okay, Deidara, just don't tell any one else. I'm having way too much fun with this".

"Okay", he nods.

"Tobi is a good boy!" Tobi yells happily as we play twister. **(I'm so evil).**

"Right foot green, left arm blue!" Deidara yells.

The other Akatsuki members (minus Itachi, Rei, Kisame, and Zetsu, who aren't playing) had already been disqualified. For ninjas, none of them were any good. Of course, I played dirty. I tripped and elbowed them on "accident". Hidan had almost throttled me until he saw that only Tobi and I were left. He must have known something was up. The other Akatsukis seemed to have expecting faces.

I move my foot to the closest green and I move my arm to blue. Tobi does the same. And then it happens. I fall and Tobi collapses on top me. And accidentally (I hadn't planned this) our lips touched. **And we kissed.** Silence surrounded us as we get up. Everyone's (minus Itachi and Deidara, who knew what was going on) faces were bright, bright red.

"Oops, clumsy me", I giggled.

"No, no, Zuka. It was all Tobi's fault", Tobi apologizes.

"Aw, Tobi you're so sweet", I say wrapping him in a hug as I wink at Deidara.

Throughout the day, I was humiliating myself as I used Tobi for my torture.

"Tobi is a good boy!" Tobi says gleefully for the millionth time.

God, that is so annoying. I wonder if it it's even possible for Tobi to be angry? So far in my time here at Akatsuki, Tobi has never once been mad (the Hidan thing doesn't count because Tobi apologized to him soon after). I wonder if I could make Tobi mad. So far I made the other Akatsuki members (minus Itachi and Rei) insane.

So far I had only annoyed Zetsu and Kakuzu. I'd told Zetsu we were going vegan and he just about fainted when I placed a salad in front of him and apologized for any relatives that I may have killed. He threatened to eat me. But when I placed an entire deer carcass (I won't let him eat humans in front of me) in front of him, he had made an edgy laugh. He thought I was serious! Then I had stolen eight dollars from Kakuzu and put them on Hidan's Jashin temple. I didn't believe in Jashin, so I figured he wouldn't kill me. When Kakuzu had asked me is I had stolen eight dollars I said no, but I saw Hidan come out of your room. Kakuzu fell for it and entered Hidan's room. And guess what? Hidan had seen the eight dollars and had thought that Kakuzu had converted to Jashin! Then they got in this huge fight while I was laughing my head off in the hall. When they're fight made it into the hall, they saw me laughing and they knew it was me. Then Hidan proceeded to beat the crap out of me until I promised not to steal money from Kakuzu and to not violate Jashin's temple. I agreed.

Throughout the rest of the day I followed Tobi around and began to annoy him. I was like a Tobi clone except instead of annoying the other Akatsuki members, I annoyed Tobi himself.

I slowly stalked my prey, until, "Zuka is a good girl!"

Hallway: "Zuka is a good girl!"

Tobi coming out of the bathroom (don't ask): "Zuka is a good girl!"

Living Room: "Zuka is a good girl!"

Kitchen: "Zuka is a good girl!"

Tobi's Room: "Zuka is a good girl!"

Bathroom again: "Zuka is a good girl!"

As I followed Tobi throughout the day, he slowly changed. At first he replied happily, "Tobi is a good boy too!" but then he started to become quiet.

Then, ""Zuka is a good girl!"

"ZUKA IS NOT A GOOD GIRL! SHUT UP! GO AWAY! LEAVE TOBI ALONE!" Tobi exploded.

He stomps (amazingly he can) to the kitchen, muttering under his breath, "Who does Zuka think she is? Tobi was here first. Tobi is a better good boy. Mizu lies and cheats, and steals. Tobi is a good boy".

I slowly enter the kitchen as quietly as I can.

"Zuka is a good girl!" I sing slightly off-key.

What happened next shocked me. No, it totally destroyed the natural order of the world (if Itachi smiled the same thing would happen). Tobi whirled around and slapped me.

**TOBI SLAPPED ME. **

"Tobi is your superior Mizuka! You must listen to Tobi! Tobi will hurt you more if you disobey him again!"

Wow! Tobi just freaked out. Beware of Tobi. Note to self: Tobi is highly emotional when provoked.

As I walk down the hall (away from Tobi) with my hand trying to cover the angry red welt spreading across my face, whom should I run into?

"Wow, who bitch-slapped you?" Hidan asks.

"Tobi", I say meekly.

"Seriously?"

"Yeah".

"You've got to be lying".

"I'm not".

"You're not?" Hidan asks,

"Yes".

"Are you sure?"

"Yes, I'm sure. Tobi has a dark side. All I did was annoy him and he slapped me".

"Are you sure Itachi didn't slap you and then tell you to say that?"

"YES!"

"Okay, but the others are going to have a hard time of believing that".

"If Tobi really is a good boy, he'll tell the truth and apologize".

"Yeah, you're right", Hidan says.

Later at the meeting:

Tobi and I are standing in the palms of the two giant hands. The fingers are filled with the Akatsuki members, except for one finger. Who goes there? The meeting runs smoothly, as Rei discusses just usual things like: No fighting except if it's in the training arena. It's Deidara's turn to buy food for the fridge, and he explains my "punishment" to the other Akatsukis. That certainly made some of their days.

"Anything else?" Rei asks.

"Tobi would like to say something".

"Yes, Tobi?"

"Tobi would like to say sorry to Mizuka. Tobi is sorry that he hurt you. Tobi didn't mean to slap your face. All Mizuka was doing was playing with Tobi and Tobi slapped her. Tobi is a bad boy, a very bad boy".

The Akatsukis are in stunned silence.

"That's okay Tobi, I forgive you", I say and turning to Rei, "Whom am I rooming with tonight?"

"Itachi", he says.


	6. Chapter 6

**Restless Dreams**

Of course after hearing this, I'm in temporary shock. Me? Sharing a room with Itachi? Itachi? What the is Rei thinking? I'll be dead by morning. I walk into the kitchen in silence. The Akatsuckers must be picking up my don't-talk-to-me-or-you'll-die signals, because they avoid me. My head is brewing with thoughts and ideas of how to get out of this. Maybe I could stay up all night? No, Rei would know what I was avoiding. What to do? What to do?

"Mizuka, you're burning your hand", Deidara says.

"What?" I say dazed.

"Your hand is on fire", he repeats.

I stare at my hand in dumb wonder and I realize he is right. My hand is resting on the burner of the stove. I leave my hand there for a few more minutes, waiting for the pain to set in.

"Fuck!" I shout.

Every single head in the room turns toward me (minus Itachi). I run my hand under cold water and gently rock it back and forth.

"Owie, shit , owie, fuck. God, it hurts so much!" I say cradling my hand.

"If you hadn't set it on fire, you wouldn't be hurt", Kakuzu says matter-of-factly.

"Thanks, Captain Obvious", I say.

"If you weren't so busy thinking of Itachi you wouldn't be burned", Kisame says.

"You'd be wondering if you were going to survive the night too if you were me. I, Mizuka Kohei, leave my entire belongings and estate to Tobi because the rest of you are assholes".

"Real funny", Sasori says.

"I'm going to bed", I say loud enough for even Itachi to hear me.

I walk into his room, prepare for bed, and steal a few blankets from his bed. I lay down in the furthest corner I can find and curl up in a ball. I'm asleep when Itachi comes in…

"_Stop hurting me!"_

Go away, leave me alone.

"_You belong to me, my Little One"._

Why me? Why am I special?

"_I'll never belong to you, meanie!"_

Where's my Mommy?

"_No need to shout, no one will hear you"._

Why did you hurt Mommy?

"_Let me go!"_

Stop hurting me!

"_You're mine"._

**I'll never be yours.**

I'm dimly aware of Itachi picking me up as I thrash around and gently laying me down on the bed. He holds me and runs his fingers through my hair as I whimper in pain. Could this dream get any weirder? Eventually, my scary dreams become my normal irrational ones. I'm eating ramen and it turns into snakes and I eat it anyway.

I jump out of my skin when I wake up. I'm not on the floor; I'm… on the bed. How the hell did I get here? Did last night really happen? I seriously hope not. I groggily take a shower (yes I remembered my clothes this time) and walk into the kitchen. Sitting at the table is Hidan, tearing at a slice of raw meat, Kakuzu, who's reading the paper, and Itachi, who is giving me a questionable look. I can't tell whether it's disgust or concern. Who cares? I say good morning to everyone (ignoring Itachi) and make breakfast. As I cook all my worries about Itachi are drenched away as I concentrate on not burning the bacon. Unfortunately, my efforts are wasted.

"Water Style: Striking Snake Jutsu!"

Snake-like tendrils of water explode out of the sink and attack the burning bacon. When I'm sure that the bacon is not about to combust I stop my attack. Sadly, the bacon is ruined. And… the rest of the Akatsukis in the room are soaked. This makes me crack up into hysterical laughter, which makes Hidan slap me.

"Should I try again?" I giggle.

"I'll do it", Sasori murmurs.

"Mornin', Sori", I say, "And thanks".

"No need to thank me, I don't think any of us like burnt bacon".

"Does that mean I don't have to fix breakfast?" I say happily.

"No, you're not allowed to from now on. However, you still have to fix lunch and dinner. And what's that thing in your hair?"

He's referring to the long platinum blonde string hanging in front of my face.

"Oh, this? Well you see-"

**"AHHHH!"**

Deidara runs into the kitchen his eyes blazing. He is pointing at a slight bald spot in his ponytail. Oops.

"Okay who did it, yeah?!"

His eyes dart from person to person, until his eyes stop at me.

"Morning Deidei, how'd you sleep? And what did we do?"

"You… you cut my hair".

"Why yes, I guess I did. You see, your hair smells really nice. Like, strawberries. So I wanted a piece of it and Itachi wouldn't let me cut it all off-"

Deidara's eyes swerve to Itachi, whose eyes are glaring ice crystals at me.

"Don't get me involved in this", he says dangerously.

"Or what? _You'll bite me_?"

"No, but I just might tell everyone here what you were whimpering about in your sleep. That is what you were talking about before you started talking about ramen".

"You wouldn't".

"I would".

"Great now you've sparked our curiosity. Just tell us what the fuck this is about", Hidan says.

"Now he's going to kill me if we don't tell", I whine, "Thanks a lot Tachi".

"Just tell us what the hell she was talking about", Hidan says.

"Nothing, she was probably dreaming about you beating her up. That'd give anybody nightmares", Itachi says suddenly.

I immediately know that he's lying. He knows that wasn't what I was dreaming about. I vaguely remember mentioning my mother in my dream-talk. I've never told anybody about my mother, except for Deidara. And knowing Deidara, he probably didn't tell them. He wouldn't, would he? Speaking of Deidara…

"Can we focus again, yeah? She cut my hair!" Deidara screams.

"Who'll do the punishing this time?" Kakuzu says.

"And there'll be no one to pull him off this time", Deidara warns.

"Damn!" I curse, immediately knowing whom they were talking about.

"Let's dance, ", Hidan says.

"Catch me if you can, asshole!" I gleefully shout as I take off running.

Unfortunately, who should hinder my escape but Tobi the bad boy. He wraps me in another lung-bursting hug, which makes me unable to move.

"Tobi, get out of my way!" I yell at him.

**"Zuka doesn't like Tobi!"** Tobi cries.

He lets me go and runs into his room, slamming the door.

"Sorry, Tobi. I gotta get away from Hidan", I explain to thin air.

"Fat chance of that", Hidan snarls from behind me.

"Shit!" I yell.

Hidan slams me into the wall and grinds my head against the wall.

"Learn you lesson well, bitch. When you mess with the Akatsuki, you mess with death".

"You're the bitch", I spit at him.

He repeatedly slams my head into the wall and then pulls out his scythe from nowhere.

"You wouldn't".

"I would".

His scythe gently caresses my skin before he presses the edge against my vein.

"If I cut here, you might bleed to death", he says sweetly.

"And if you do cut there, I'll kill you", I return.

"Very well, somewhere else", he murmurs.

He lifts the scythe up to my face and edges away my hair as he presses his scythe against my brow. Then he slices. I wince at the sharp sting of the blade and ignore the horrid smell of the blood. I stick my tongue out at Hidan. He moves the blade down to just underneath my eye and slashes. I feel a bloody tear slide down my face unwillingly. He smiles as I wince at the scythe under my other eye. He moves the blades down near my neck and sighs. He moves the blade further down and cuts through the fabric on my outfit, giving me a gash on my stomach. I crumble to the ground and don't get back up. Hidan lifts me up and pulls out his kunai knife. Without his telling me I already know. I struggle to lift up my left arm and ignore the pain as he rewrites his name.

"You belong to me, Mizuka, and no one else. Remember that".

He drops me to the ground and I just sit there as the blood creates a pool around me. My vision in my right eye fades into nothingness. And then the left eye fades too, even though he hasn't slashed it. I'm blind. Darkness is all I have.

"Help" I murmur, though I know no one can hear.

"Help", I cry again.

"Someone please help, I can't see".

"Help me".

Nothing stirs in the darkness…

**Later On...**

"Maybe he did go too far", Kakuzu sighs.

"It was just hair after all", Deidara adds.

"She almost bled to death", Sasori comments.

"I'm blind", I say softly.

"We're sorry, Mizuka, we let him go too far", Kakuzu says.

"I'm blind", I annunciate.

"We can see that", Sasori says.

"Well I can't see anything", I say.

"Don't worry the Leader is really mad at Hidan", Kakuzu says.

"I'm sorry, un", Deidara says.

"Deidara, I shouldn't have cut your hair. I should be the one apologizing".

I feel arms wrap around me and I know it's Deidara thanks to the strawberry shampoo.

"Deidara… can't… breathe", I gasp.

I hear soft laughter around the room and I feel at home.

"Where am I?"

"Itachi's room", Sasori says.

"Why the fuck did you bring me in here? **Get me out of here!**" I scream.

I try to jump off of the bed, but I'm forced down by Kakuzu's arms.

"I wouldn't move if I were you. You don't want to open up that gash on your stomach".

"I'm _blind_, and all you care about is the stupid stomach gash!"

"Your eyes might heal".

"Might", I emphasize.

"Stop being such a drama queen", Sasori says.

I stick my bottom lip out in a pout and cross my arms.

"Well, what am I supposed to do?"

"Rest and relax", Kakuzu says.

"But that's all I've been doing since I started working for you", I complain.

"You're no good to us blind, so heal", Sasori instructs.

"Gee, thanks".

I hear them leave the room and I let loose a long sigh. Why does it have to be me? Couldn't I just have been a shinobi and led a semi-peaceful life? But, no, I had to have a father with a gambling habit, who lost me to a psychotic person, who experimented on me, and then my father bought me back and then lost me again to a group of psychos. Aren't I special? I close my eyes and drift off into dreams.

I repeatedly feel the pain of Hidan's scythe against my skin, the hits, and then the scythe changes to a knife, cutting open my mind, exploring my secrets…

I wake up in a hot sweat. My breath is ragged and I'm suddenly angry. Angry at my father for not being there for me when I needed him. Angry at Him for torturing my mother and changing me. Angry with the Akatsuki for keeping my here as a servant. Angry, angry, angry. I feel my chakra summon up to my eyes, but I figure it won't do any good because I can't see. But then something strange happens.

I can see the shapes of the room! I see them in odd swirls of color and it takes me a while to realize that I'm seeing chakra. I'm feeling the chakra coming off of the things and my kekkai genkai is making them into shapes! I can see!

I gently get off of the bed and pad down the hallway. I enter the living room grinning my head off. No one had noticed me; they're all trying to pay attention to some T.V. show. But I know that on the inside of their heads, they're all thinking about me (maybe not Itachi, but still).

I pick up a kunai knife off of the table and throw it at Itachi. With his amazing **weasel-like reflexes** he catches the kunai. This little action gets lots of attention from everyone in the room. They all start talking at once.

"Will you shut up?!" I yell above the ruckus.

"How can you see?" Deidara asks.

I shrug my shoulders and smile, "The stupid kekkai genkai saves my butt again".

"But your eyes are still clouded", Sasori says.

"I'm not seeing things like you normally do. I'm seeing chakra".

"Chakra?" Kakuzu asks.

I nod my head solemnly and then crack up laughing. I fall to the ground laughing and then I get up and start skipping around the room. Eventually I fall to the ground in hysterics, but I'm as high as a kite.

"Oh, I'm dizzy. Why are you all spinning?"

"I think someone should try to calm her down", Itachi murmurs.

"Calm me down? Why? I'm fine!" I giggle.

All of a sudden Itachi looks directly in my eyes. And then he does something odd with his eyes…

"Mangekyo Sharingan".

And then I black out…

When I wake up, I have a pounding headache.

"Damn, why are there horses in my head?"

"Thank God, you're not hyper anymore".

"Wait a minute… I can see!"

It's true! My vision is back, everything's in color. I can see the Akatsuki members in full detail.

"How'd this happen?" I ask.

"It appears as though Itachi's Sharingan fixed your vision somehow", Kakuzu says.

"How the could it do that?" I ask, "I mean the Sharingan is powerful, but it's totally weak compared to the Hyuga's Byakugan… yes, it's totally weak".

I'm saying these things just so Itachi will get seriously pissed off. It doesn't work and this pisses me off. How can this guy be so emotionless!?

"Hey, emo freak! How can you not react to that? I just dissed your pathetic clan!" I yell.

"Your judgment is correct, my clan was pathetic. But I broke all ties long ago".

"Was that supposed to sound like a smart-ass comment, you **weasel**?"

"Oh no", he says sarcastically.

"That's it! We never got to fight! I challenge you now, **BELIEVE IT**!" I shout.

**…**

**…**

"Did I really just say believe it?" I ask.

"I think you did, un", Deidara agrees.

"You sound like that Kyubi kid", Kisame adds.

I hand my head in my hands as a giant raining emo cloud hangs over my head. I begin rocking back and forth, muttering to myself like a crazy person. Eventually I notice that the other Akatsuki had already left the room. I immediately snap out of my emo mood into a fit of rage.

"Hey! You assholes don't just leave me here! Where the fuck are you assholes!? Answer me, dammit!"

I feel a chakra presence behind me and turn around, "About time-"

It's Zetsu. He grabs my wrist and pulls me toward him. I silence a shudder that threatens to run up my spine.

"What do you want, Salad?"

"**I want your flesh sliding down my throat**/ No, mustn't do that. Rei would be angry/ **So hungry, must eat**/ should leave before it's too late".

"Hey Salad, can you and your bipolar-ness go away?" I say.

"**Eat**/Leave/**Eat**/Leave".

"I vote for the side that's saying leaving".

He reluctantly lets go of my wrist and slinks back into the walls. I rub my raw wrist and sigh. Now what? I walk into the kitchen, which is strangely empty. What's going on here? Oh well. I grab a box of pocky and return to the living room. I lie down on the couch and silently munch on my pocky. I had been blind, and now I could see. I had uncovered a new part of my kekkai genkai. If these were good things, then why do I have the feeling that something is horribly wrong?


	7. Chapter 7

**Complications **

After a somewhat good sleep (shared a room with Deidara, so no worries), I walk into the kitchen, rubbing sleep from my eyes. I practically get glomped by Tobi, but I dodge with expert timing using the new ability of my kekkai genkai while my eyes were closed.

"Morning", I say sleepily.

A couple of people return the greeting and when I am fully awake, I sit down at the table with a steaming cup of ramen in front of me. I eat quickly (choking once) and leave the room as fast as I can. My heart is racing and it's like something is very wrong. What could be wrong? What? I trace my mind for possible clues, but come up empty-handed. This feeling of premonition. Something is going to happen, something bad. I walk a bit down the hallway and stop in front of a room with the word Library printed on it. It should be quiet in here. I open the door silently and creep in. Thousands of scrolls and books line the shelves and I ponder which one to chose first. My eyes spy a book titled _**Snakes **_and I automatically grab it without thinking. For the next couple of hours I peruse the voluminous book without care. The anatomy of a snake, venom, muscles, hunting habits; I read it all. But after a while my eyes begin to droop and before I know it I pass out.

_I'm near_

Who are you?

_You'll be mine again_

Again?

_So close, my precious_

Who are you?

… And so the snake draws near the mouse.

I wake up drenched in sweat, my screams muffled by a couch pillow. The Snake book is on the floor, it must have fallen off sometime during my nightmare. I wipe a shaking hand across my forehead and put the Snake book back where I found it. I heave a sigh and slowly walk back to the kitchen. I grab some of my comfort food (pocky) and sit down on a barstool. Even the pocky doesn't help though. The feeling of being watched has only intensified a thousand times over.

"Fuck, what's wrong with me?" I mutter.

"Yes, what is wrong with you?"

My eyes dart to the doorway where, like an angel of death, Itachi stands glaring.

"What are you talking about?" I ask innocently.

"You are quite the unusual creature", he says.

"Was that supposed to be a compliment?"

My temper flares and my kekkai genkai activates. I should dose this fireboy in water. I would love to kill him, but I'm sure that would be a one-way ticket to death for me.

"Your eyes are full of hatred; for me, for the Akatsuki, your father, and your mother's killer".

"H-h-how do you know that?"

"My Sharingan sees more then you think. And remember, I've heard your sleep-talk".

"Don't remind me".

"What are you thinking of?"

"What?" I ask in astonishment.

"What are you thinking about?"

"Besides killing you?"

"I doubt you could do that, but yes".

"I'm thinking about-".

"Hey have you guys seen Sasori anywhere, un? I can't find him anywhere, yeah", Deidara interrupts.

"No", Itachi states.

"Sorry Deidei. I don't know where he is either. I'll help you", I offer.

"Thanks, Mizu, un", he says, "Oh, by the way, Rei wants to see you, Itachi, and Kisame".

"Thank you Deidara", Itachi says blankly.

"Whatever, yeah".

"We'll finish this conversation later", Itachi says, glaring at me.

"Sure thing Tachi. Don't worry I won't tell anybody about **your true feelings for Kisame**- oops".

He leaves with a parting glare and Deidara turns to me, his jaw wide.

"WHAT?! UN!"

"That's seriously what we were not talking about. Now let's look for Sasori".

"Okay, un", Deidara says.

We walk down the hallway, discussing the possible places Sasori could be.

"He builds puppets, right?" I ask.

"Yeah, un", Deidara replies.

"So does he have a place where he builds the puppets or something?"

"Sasori's secret workshop is well hidden. No one besides the Leader and Sasori, and possibly Sasori's old partner, know where it is".

"Sasori had a partner before you?" I ask.

"Yeah, from what little the others say about him, they say he was very snake-like, un".

At the mention of snakes, flashes of my dreams come to my mind. I push them away and concentrate on the task at hand.

"You go look everywhere we've already searched and I'll look for this "secret" workshop", I say.

"But it's hidden-".

"And with my luck it'll be the first door I try".

I start to walk down an unfamiliar hallway when I hear footsteps running behind me. I feel a hand grasp my shoulder and turn me around. I stare bewildered into Deidara's eyes and his panting breath.

"D-D-Deidara?"

"I have to ask you something", he huffs, "What, what did Itachi say to you, yeah?"

"Itachi?"

"What did he say to you?"

"Um, nothing much", I answer.

"Please tell me, un", he asks.

"He asked me what I was thinking and told me something was wrong with me. That's all".

"I don't think anything's wrong with you", Deidara says quietly.

Realizing what he said, we both blush bright red.

"Are you jealous, Deidara?" I ask shyly.

"I-I don't like him talking to you like that, yeah".

"But are you jealous?" I pry.

"I-I guess, yeah. I really like you, Mizuka".

His blush deepens and so does mine. Deidara likes me? Even though I'm a monster?

"I-I like you too, Deidara", I say.

"You do, yeah?"

"I do".

Then I laugh, "It sounds like we just got married, huh?"

He returns the laugh and surprises us both by giving me a close hug.

"It just got really complicated, huh?" Deidara says.

"Yeah", I sigh.

We lean in, closer and closer, until it happens. Our lips briefly meet and we kiss. Of course I consider this my first kiss (technically Tobi was first, but that was an accident). The kiss is laced with nerves and it feels like an inferno breaks across each of our faces. We pull apart, breathing heavily, and sigh.

"This just got really complicated", I say.

"Yeah, un", he replies.

"Um, so Sasori", I remind him (and myself).

"Oh, yeah", he says.

"I'll be going this way, you're rechecking, remember?" I ask.

"Not really, un", he says truthfully.

"Okay", I say.

I lace my fingers into his before continuing down the hall. I… just… kissed… Deidara. Wow. But a little complication doesn't hurt anybody, right? I mean besides the fact he has mouths on his hands, he's the least psychotic person in the Akatsuki. I couldn't have picked a better person to date. But what about Rei? Will he allow it?

I have to mentally shake myself and remember to search for Sasori. I sigh and pick the closest door. Just an armory, full of weapons. I continue walking down the hall, checking every door on the way. Then I notice this weird suit of armor thingy down the hall.

"That wasn't there before", I mutter.

I walk up to it, circling and observing it. It looks like it's made of metal, but its hollow and sound like wood. I activate my kekkai genkai and look at the suit. Chakra is leaking out of it. Why would chakra be leaking out of a suit of armor? Unless…

I follow the chakra strings down the hall to another suit of armor. But this time the chakra disappears into the wall.

"What in the-".

I press my palms to the hall and lean my head in. But then the wall caves in and I fall into a hidden hallway. Even in the dark my kekkai genkai works. I walk down the hallway, wondering what in the world is going on. Eventually, I see a dim light at the end of the tunnel. I slowly approach it, my senses on full alert. I step into the dim room and observe my surroundings.

There are puppets, or bodies, all over the room. I guess I found Sasori's secret workshop. And, speak of the devil; there he is, tinkering with some puppets.

"So you found me, huh?" he says.

"I guess so, but what's with all the secrecy?"

"The other members may be violent, but they wouldn't like it if I started tearing the organs out of a corpse in front of them".

"I guess that makes sense. But am I the only who knows?"

"No. The Leader knows. I had to tell him anyway, because he's the leader. And my old partner knew. In fact, he seemed to enjoy watching me work".

"Everyone seems to think he was a creep. Was he?"

"In a way. His goals were a bit far-fetched. He ran away because Itachi injured him".

"What was his name?" I ask hesitantly.

"Orochimaru; one of the Three Great Sannin".

I stifle a shudder and a scream. He was here. No wonder I hate the Akatsuki so much.

"Why the sudden interest in my partner?" Sasori asks.

"No reason", I say calmly, "Just curious".

"But what to do now? You know where my workshop is and it would be too much trouble to move. What to do with you?"

"Let me go?" I squeak.

"But can I trust you?"

"Yes", I say quickly.

"I'm not so sure", he says, "Let's make a deal; if you tell I get to turn you into a puppet, you don't and I let you live".

"Deal", I say swiftly.

"Good, now that that's over with, let's discuss you and Deidara".

"Me and… Deidara?"

"Don't think my puppet didn't see you".

"Um… yeah. I guess we're together", I say.

"Well, you see, this is a bit of a problem. His infatuation with you may hinder his quality of work and it may distract you from your duties".

"It won't, I serve the Akatsuki and their goals", I say like a clone.

"And what is our goal?"

"Um… world domination?"

"How will we achieve that?"

"Awesome jutsus and cheese?" I say.

"See? You have no idea what our goals are".

"But-".

"Leave now. But let me say one thing, if Deidara doesn't do his job properly; it will end badly for you".

**Later that night:**

"Hey! Assholes! Dinner's ready!" I yell.

They slowly enter the room, each at his own pace. The second I finished saying that, Tobi magically appeared at the table, fork and knife in hand.

"Tobi won! Tobi was here fast! Tobi is a good boy!" he yells.

"Um, Tobi it wasn't a race", I say. **sweat drop**

Then Kakuzu, Sasori, Deidara, Itachi, Zetsu, and Kisame come in. I lace my fingers with Deidara before he goes to sit down. It seems like everyone in the Akatsuki knows about our romance.

"Get a room, slut ", Hidan says.

"Sit down, asshole", I reply curtly.

He throws Deidara and me a glare and sits down next to Kakuzu.

"Okay, dinner's served. Yummy, soup", I say gleefully.

I go around the table dishing out soup. I purposely drop a spoonful on Hidan's lap. He stifles a yell and lifts his hand to slap me. But Deidara fingers his clay from across the table and Hidan drops his hand.

"Lucky, whore", he mutters.

I smirk and finish serving the soup.

"Eat up guys. My blood, sweat, and tears went into making this", I say cheerfully.

"So it will taste bad", Hidan mutters.

They carefully eat the first bite and then keep eating more and more. Compliments (from everyone but Itachi, Hidan, and Rei- who's not at the table) floated across the table.

"What kind of soup is this?" Kisame asks.

"Secret family recipe", I answer.

"Come on, tell us", he begs.

"Well-".

"Please?"

"Okay, I guess I'll tell you. It's **SHARK FIN SOUP**!!" I giggle.

Kisame about faints right there, while I'm having a fit of laughter. The other members shrug and continue to eat their soup.

"And why do you think she should go with us?" asks Itachi.

"Huh?" I ask.

Rei appears in the doorway and sits at the head of the table. I fill his bowl with soup and back away.

"Because she's still being punished for trying to escape", Rei answers.

"Let me say again, huh?"

Then I flashback to what Rei said a while back.

"No way", I say in denial.

"Yes", Rei says, "Itachi and Kisame have a mission".

"There is absolutely NO WAY that I'm going with that asshole", I say, pointing to Itachi.

"I'm sorry but its part of your punishment", Rei says.

"Can't I go with Deidara?" I whine.

Then I blush when I realize that I forgot to mention Sasori.

"Then it's an even better punishment because you won't enjoy it", Rei says.

I pout for a second and then find a loophole in my punishment.

"Hey Rei? Can I change part of my punishment?"

"Depends", he says flatly.

"If I remember correctly, you said that I could share a room with a member as long as we both agreed to it. Otherwise I had to move room to room. Right?"

"Yes", he says grimly.

"Can Deidara and I share a room?" I ask.

"Does he want to?" Rei asks.

"Yes, un", Deidara speaks up.

"Fine-".

"Yes!" I shout gleefully.

"This new rule will start right after your mission with Itachi and Kisame".

Fuck! I can see that Rei can be persuaded no more. With a sorrowful smile to Deidara, I finish clearing the table.

"Who am I sleeping with tonight?" I ask.

"**Hidan**", Rei says simply.

I hang my head in my emo cloud and don't say a word. The Akatsuki leave the room as I wash the dishes. I'm so concentrated on scrubbing an annoying spot of a plate that I don't notice someone behind me. I feel arms wrap around me waist and I almost jump out of my skin. A hand cups my chin and turns my head to face their eyes. I sigh at the sight of those mesmerizing blue eyes.

"Hey, Deidei", I say.

"Hey yourself, un", he replies.

"Um… kinda hard to do dishes in this position".

"Yeah", he says, "Does this help?"

He's released my waist and is hovering nearby.

"Yes, that helps".

I finish up the dishes and Deidara and I move to the couch. We're "trying" to watch some movie on the T.V. but we're too distracted by each other. I'm cuddled up against his chest; his hands rest on my stomach. A loose strand of hair falls in front of my face and Deidara brushes it away. His hand-tongue tickles my chin and I giggle like a schoolgirl. He pulls me into a kiss and we embrace.

"Hey, bitch. We're going to bed, NOW", Hidan commands.

I sigh and leave Deidara sitting on the couch looking slightly dazed. I follow Hidan into his room and put my pajamas on in the bathroom. When I come out Hidan's taking his cloak off. I can't help but stare at his six-pack. I finish changing and grab some blankets off the bed and go to a corner.

"Where are you going, slut?"

"To sleep", I answer.

"Did I tell you to sleep on the floor?"

"Um, no?"

"Then lay down on the bed", he commands.

"Um, okay", I say.

I slowly walk to the bed and lay on the farthest edge I can get to. I feel Hidan lay down and suppress a shudder. Deidara, think of Deidara. I imagine Hidan is Deidara, minus the physical attraction part. It helps… not really.

"How can you like that fag-fucker Deidara?"

"What?"

"Why are you dating that fag?"

"Um, 'cause we like each other?"

"So! You are mine! You belong to me!" he screams.

I cringe at the outburst, because it reminds me of the scars. Also because it reminds me of someone else who said that a long time ago. He grabs me wrists and pins me underneath him.

"Why?!" he screams.

He lifts up the sleeve on my shirt and shows me the scars again.

"You are mine!"

He brings out a knife and cuts his name on my arm again. I cry out at the pain because it was starting to heal. He cuts deeper at my scream.

"Mine, Mizuka. You are mine. People like Deidara can't have you".

My eyes are wide in shock and fear. Hidan forces my mouth open and kisses me. But the kiss is full of hate/love and is not tender. It hurts me. Tears roll down my cheeks uncontrollably. Still the torture goes on. Hidan stops and licks the blood off the cuts on my arm. He returns to my lips and lets the blood flow between us. The tears are unstoppable and I hate to seem weak, but I can't help it. He stops kissing me and wipes the tears away from my eyes. He brings the knife to his arm and makes a cut. Holding his arm to my mouth, he pours the vile blood into me. I'm too weak to resist. He cuts deeper on my arm and drinks my blood.

"We're blood-bonded now. Jashin smiles upon us", he says.

"Never", I spit blood out of my mouth into his eye.

Using what little strength I have, I run out of his room. Blood drips from my arm; leaving a trail. I don't care. I run out of the Akatsuki hideout into the forest, until I find a small deer thicket. I crawl inside and bury my head between my knees as the earth-shattering pain hits me. I wish I were dead. I want to die. The blood dries and I wipe tearstains from my eyes. The sun is rising. I spent the night out here. They'll think I ran away! They'll kill me! I run back to the hideout and run into my room.

I sigh as the door closes behind me. I shed my clothes as soon as I reach the bathroom. I turn the shower on and stay in there for about an hour. Blood stains the water red and dirt covers the bottom of the tub. The water turns cold and I shiver. Was that what my bad feeling was? Or was it something else? I turn the water off and dry myself. Changing into a clean outfit; I gaze in the mirror. Bruises cover my sides, soft but noticeable. What will I say if Deidara sees? That Hidan violated me? What am I going to do? I step out of the bathroom and freeze. Deidara is sitting on my bed, forming clay in his palm. He meets my eyes, his eyes warm but sad.

"Deidara", I state.

"Mizuka, what are you doing here?"

"Taking a shower. It's my room you know".

"But The Leader said you weren't allowed in here without an Akatsuki member with you".

"Well, no one thought to tell me that fact".

"That's why I'm here. Why are you so cranky, un? Is it… you know… that… you know", he blushes.

"Uh, no! It's just, um; I didn't sleep well last night. Hidan's floor wasn't very comfy and he scores", I lie.

"Oh".

We stand in silence for a little longer.

"Itachi and Kisame are waiting for you", he says.

"Oh, yeah. That stupid mission", I groan.

"Mizuka, I've been having this weird feeling. Like something's going wrong, un".

"Me too", I agree.

He hugs me tightly his face in my hair.

"I'll miss you, Mizuka, yeah", he says.

"And I you", I reply.

We share a gentle kiss, but the moment is ruined when someone clears his throat in annoyance.

"Aw, Itachi, why ruin it?" Kisame asks.

"Asshole", I mutter.

Deidara and Itachi glare at each other. Kisame looks a bit uncomfortable and I'm wondering what the is going on.

"Weasel, are you jealous?" I tease.

"No", he says dully.

"'Cause you know at this rate your clan will never be repopulated".

He doesn't say anything, but turns his crimson glare on me.

"Ew, scary", I say sarcastically.

"You have no clue how scary Itachi can be", Kisame says.

"Shut up, Fish-Stick. You and your boyfriend need to get a room".

Now Kisame's mad at me. This mission is not starting well.

"Let's go", Itachi says grimly.

"Bye, Deidei", I say sadly.

"Come on, it's not the end of the world", Kisame says, "You'll see him when we get back".

I give Deidara a good-bye kiss and we begin our "great" mission.

"What are we doing?" I ask.

"Capturing the holder of the Nine-Tailed Fox".

"Why?"

"Because The Leader asked us to. It's part of the Akatsuki's plan".

"Whoop-de-do".

"You, however, will not be with us for the majority of the mission", Itachi says.

"What?!" I yell.

"You'll be staying in a hotel. Being the good girl that you are", Kisame adds.

I pout for the rest of the journey. As we near the village, Kisame and Itachi put on their cloaks and hats.

"You guys do know that you are committing a fashion crime?" I ask.

They say nothing, but I stick my tongue out at them and we walk into Konoha.

"Wow, looks like a bomb went off here", I say.

"They were under attack", Itachi says.

"From who?"

"The shinobi of the Sand and Sound".

"Why?"

"To destroy the village".

"They didn't succeed", I state.

"No, but the third Hokage was killed in the process".

"By who?"

"Orochimaru, a former shinobi of this village".

I freeze for a second. He was here too? What's he doing, **stalking me**? Why will this giant asshole not leave me alone?!

Itachi and Kisame are staring at me like I have leprosy. I realize that I've been staring into space for about five minutes.

"Um, sorry. That's so sad", I lie.

It looks like Kisame bought my lie, but Itachi glares at me. I shrug my shoulders and reluctantly follow them through the gates of Konoha.

**A/N: I just realized I haven't done one of these thingys yet, so here goes! I hope you've been enjoying the story so far, and I will definitely have new chapters up often. Yes, Mizuka and Deidara are a couple (don't like it? too bad). I also have this little sadistic thing between her and Hidan, but Mizuka and Itachi? Who knows? Thanks for all the wonderful reviews, I love all comments and criticisms dearly (although flames I could do without). Thanks again! And keep reading!**


	8. Chapter 8

**The Avenger's Attempt**

"But I don't _wanna_ stay here", I whine.

"Too bad", Itachi says.

I gaze, annoyed, at the hotel room they're imprisoning me in.

"It's beige and pink, it's ugly", I complain.

"Good", Kisame says.

"How is ugly good? 'Cause look at you; you don't even have a girlfriend".

"Kisame we need to go", Itachi says.

"Whatever", I mutter.

I lie down on the uncomfortable bed and close my eyes. I imagine Deidei is with me. We'd be holding hands and talking. Itachi would be dead and Kisame would be roasting over a hot fire. Yummy! In fact, Itachi would be buried right underneath where Deidara and I would be sitting. Ah, dreams, is there anything better?

But the dream shifts and I'm walking down a hallway that's filling up with water. I'm wearing next-to-nothing and shivering. The water rises higher and higher and I can't breathe. Where's Deidara? Anyone? My lungs gasp for air. I spy a door that seems to be protected from the rising water. I swim to it and walk inside. Snakes slither up and down the walls, they go across the floor. Up and down my body they crawl. I start to scream, but I don't have a voice. Then I feel hands circle my waist, but they aren't Deidara's. I stare up into his reptilian eyes and feel as though I'm seven again. Then he leans closer to me and whispers in my ear.

"_You are mine"._

I jolt upright, the pillow silencing my screams of terror. Itachi and Kisame are back. Kisame is sleeping on the other bed and Itachi's watching me. His crimson pools make me shiver.

"What were you dreaming about?" he asks.

"N-nothing", I gasp.

"You were screaming".

"I was dreaming of you".

"Liar", he hisses.

"Did I happen to mention I hate you?"

"I heard you", he says suddenly.

"Heard what?"

"You… and Hidan".

I freeze pursing my lips in distaste at the memory of last night.

"Nothing happened".

"Then why did you run crying from his room?"

"Because he was being an asshole".

"I doubt that was the reason. Tell me", he demands.

"Like I'd tell you".

"I never said anything about you telling me _willingly_".

I back up against the headboard of the bed and wrap my arms around my knees.

"Go to Hell, Itachi", I say.

He stands up and moves gracefully toward me. I glare at him, praying for the ground to open up and swallow him. But he comes nearer and nearer and my fear grows.

"What are you doing?" I ask.

"This", he says, "Mangekyo Sharingan".

The room transforms into a black and white world.

"Relive last night for only me to see", Itachi says from somewhere above.

_"So! You are mine! You belong to me!" Hidan yells._

I feel the pain of the cuts, the kiss, and the blood. So much blood; so much red. I cry out, scream for him to stop, but to no avail. When we reach the part where I run out of the room, the black and white world dissipates.

Itachi's standing in the corner, his usual glare on his face. I return the glare through blurry eyes.

"So that's what happened", he says.

"Yeah, that's what happened ", I say.

"That wasn't even a full Mangekyo Sharingan I used on you", he says.

"Whatever", I mutter, turning over and going back to sleep.

When I wake up, Itachi and Kisame are gone and there's a note on the table.

_Don't Leave_

"Like I could", I mutter.

I sit down on the bed and sigh. Now what am I going to do? I pull out a kunai and start flipping it in one hand. This kunai is like a metaphor for my life; sharp, dangerous, precise, and yet it had it's blunt side too. I give a small yelp as I accidentally cut my palm open. I am leaning forward to suck the blood up when I remember something Hidan had said,

"_We're blood-bonded now. Jashin smiles upon us"._

What WAS a blood-bond? I stared at the cut and about cut myself again in shock. It was already healing.

"What the Fuck!?" I screamed.

"Now what's wrong?" Itachi sighed.

I was momentarily shocked by their reappearance, but then remembered the real reason I was shocked.

"What's a blood-bond?" I asked Itachi.

"A what?"

"Blood-bond. What is it?"

He frowned for a second before answering, "A blood-bond is a sign of marriage, union, or sometimes ownership in some religions; mostly the violent ones. It grants each recipient the others' abilities to some extent. Why?"

"THE BASTARD BLOOD-BONDED ME!" I yell.

"Who?" Kisame asked, confused.

Itachi's frown deepens, but then his eyes flash.

"We need to move now", he commands.

"Why?" I ask.

"ANBU Black Ops, close by", Itachi says.

"What did you DO?!"

"We'll talk on the way", he says, "Hurry now!"

I quickly grab my bag and follow them out the window (classic Akatsuki style). We run at shinobi speed out of Konoha.

"We're here for _two_ days and we're already in trouble?!" I say.

"We met some acquaintances of Itachi's", Kisame says.

"Oh, that explains it".

We continue running awhile until we reach a small gambling town.

"Don't tell me you're gambling? I'm underage you know", I say.

"Our objective is here", Itachi says.

"And anyway, there's a height limit too, Shortie", Kisame smirks.

I punch Kisame on the back of the head and a huge lump forms.

"The Kyubi dude? Whoop-de-do".

"We'll stay here for the night", Itachi says.

We chose some random hotel that's supposedly "near our target". We pay and receive our room.

"Now what?" I ask.

"You're staying with us this time. We need to lure his protector away from him".

"Protector?"

"Lord Jiraiya; one of the Three Great Sannin".

I shudder at the mention on the Great Three, but listen to the plan anyway.

**Later On After Hearing Stupid Itachi's Perverted Plan:**

"No way. I won't do it".

"Yes, you will", Itachi says.

"I am NOT flirting with some old pervert, Itachi", I argue.

"Would rather I use some innocent female walking down the street?"

"Yes".

"You've changed. You would've done anything to save an innocent in the past".

"That was then. This is now. And I joined the bad guys, remember?"

He says nothing, but continues glaring at me.

"Stop it, will ya?"

"Continuing the plan", Kisame says, "We get the kid and take him back to the base. Kill anyone who gets in our way".

"That's the plan", Itachi agrees.

"Hurray", I say with fake enthusiasm.

**The Next Day:**

Itachi does this fancy genjutsu on some poor girl walking down the street. I almost feel sorry for her. Glad, it's not me. When we set her loose on the white-haired old man, his eyes boggle out of his head. This old man is a **SUPER PERV!** Ew. The Kyubi kid goes back into his hotel room and mold chakra for a while.

I'm getting super impatient.

"Now?" I ask for the bazillionth time.

"No", Itachi replies.

**Ten minutes later:**

"Now?"

"No".

**Twenty minutes later:**

"Now?"

"Yes".

"".

"I said yes".

"Oh yeah, I heard you". **sweat drop**

We move on in the hotel room. Itachi knocks on the door. We hear some complaints from the inside of the room, but the Kyubi kid comes out. His eyes go wide in shock.

"Maybe we should cut his legs off so he doesn't run", Kisame suggests.

"Good idea, Fish Stick!" **thumbs up**

The Kyubi kid is almost shaking from fear, I can feel it. But before Kisame can even swing Samehade, Itachi stops.

"Itachi Uchiha", we hear from the end of the hall.

I turn around and it's like there's a mini Itachi standing there. He has long blue-black hair and the Sharingan eyes.

"Two Sharingan in one day? Who is he?" Kisame asks.

"Wait! I missed a Sharingan! Assholes!"

I clobber Fish Stick on the head and take a closer look at Itachi's mini-me.

"Yeah, Weasel, who is he?"

"My little brother, Sasuke", he answers.

"**Oh My Gawd!** Itachi he's even more emo then you! I bet he even writes… _**poetry**_!"

I hide under Itachi's cloak until he pushes me out.

"Meanie", I say.

The Sasuke kid gives some sort of a speech, but I don't notice because I'm looking at his hands. These weird lightning-like tendrils of energy surround his hands. He starts running toward us at an amazing speed. I start to move forward to block him, but Itachi puts his arm in front of me. He grabs Sasuke's hand and redirects the jutsu.

"Chidori One Thousand Birds?"

Itachi snaps his wrist and Sasuke cries out in pain. Itachi then proceeds to beat him up. Sasuke falls to the ground. The Kyubi kid starts gathering weird demonic chakra. Kisame swings Samehade, which sucks up the chakra.

"Maybe we should cut off his arms instead", Kisame suggests.

He moves to cut the Kyubi kid's arms "into ribbons", but a toad appears out of nowhere and blocks the sword. The pervy old man appears, holding the woman over his shoulder, and I don't envy her one bit.

"A man like me isn't wired to just blindly follow a woman like a dog! When you get to my level the woman are the ones who writhe at my charm!"

**OMG! OO What the Fuck.**

"What a horn-dog", I say.

The somewhat deflates the perv's ego, but not much.

"No, he's mine", Sasuke says.

"I'm not interested in you", Itachi says.

Ew, harsh. The kid runs up to Itachi, but gets kicked back. The kid is spurting blood all over the place. **RASPBERRY JAM! IT'S STAINING THE WALLS!** Itachi walks up to him slowly and pushes him up against a wall.

"You lack hatred", he whispers.

He uses the Mangekyo Sharingan on the kid and I flinch. I definitely feel sorry for this Sasuke kid at the moment.

"Wait a minute!" the horn-dog **(Jiraiya: I have a name you know! Rayne: what you ARE a horn-dog)** says.

Then all of a sudden we're surrounded by this weird pink stuff.

"You've just been swallowed by the rock-dwelling toad of Mount Myoboku!"

EW! TOAD STOMACH!

Itachi and Kisame start running and I follow suit.

"We're not going to make it!" I shout.

Then Itachi does this weird thing with his eyes and the wall erupts in flames. We jump out the window (Akatsuki style) and go back to the hotel.

"We're leaving?" I whine.

"Yes", Itachi answers.

We leave the hotel and run into the forest. I'm not happy about camping out in the forest, oh well.

After I'm sure Itachi and Kisame are asleep, I slip away into the forest. There is ABSOFRICKENLUTELY no way I am sleeping anywhere near Itachi. I run about a mile or two away from camp and lay down. It's not a bed, but it's not nails. I fall asleep reasonably quickly.

I wake up all of a sudden when I hear a rustle in the leaves. Who- what is there? The rustle grows louder and my heart beats faster. The sound stops and my heart pounds. A snake slips out of a bush and snaps up a mouse. I let out a sigh of relief. Just a snake.

"Mizuka, you look beautiful", a voice says.

"No", I gasp.

_"Yes, Mizuka, I've come to claim you", Orochimaru says._

**Rayne Says (otherwise known as A/N): OMG!! A cliffie! I am sooooo evil! Don't worry, just go to the next chapter **


	9. Chapter 9

**The Snake's Lair**

"What are you doing here, you bastard!?"

"Such cruel words. And here I thought you would rejoice at my arrival".

"Never! Go back where you came from, I have no interest in you".

"Oh, but I have an interest in you, my dear".

"I hate you!"

This is just too creepy. He's here.

Fatal memories from my childhood flash before my eyes; my mother's face crying in pain, his cruel eyes glistening with malice, my screams echoing around the empty room.

"_Where's Mommy!?"_

"_Give her back!"_

"_Why?"_

"_Don't leave me alone!"_

I hate him. I summon my chakra to my eyes and glare at him. My kekkai genkai assesses him and tell me exactly how to take him down.

"I see my experiments worked", he chuckles.

"Thanks to you, my life has been Hell! I hate you, I hate this stupid kekkai genkai, and I hate The Akatsuki!"

"So that's where you've been hiding. How has the Akatsuki been?"

"Like I'd tell you. Even though I hate them, they're a million times better then you".

"Have they told you how beautiful they are? Have they seen the pain and hatred you cling to so tightly? Do they know about me?"

"You haven't changed a bit", I say.

"And you have changed. You used to be this adorable little girl begging for my attention. Now that I'm giving you my undivided attention, you say you hate me".

"I was a fool, I couldn't see the true monster you were".

"And what of your mother?"

I cringe at those words, but remain silent.

"You used to call me daddy".

I cannot deny what I know is true. I thought my father hated my mother and me, so Orochimaru was a replacement for the person I lost.

"My mother died to save me. You defile her memory with your words".

"That wasn't all I defiled", he says casually.

"Bastard".

"Cruel words don't become you, my dear".

"I'm no one's dear".

"And what of Deidara?" he asks.

"D-D-Deidara? How do you know about him?"

"Even though I am no longer a member of the Akatsuki, I still have my ways of getting information".

I glare at him a little longer before sliding some shuriken out of their pouch and launching them at him. He dodges then easily, and it's only now that I realize his arms are bandaged.

"What happened to your arms?" I ask.

"Just a minor setback from when I killed the 3rd Hokage".

"So the rumors are true".

"Yes, but my setback will be solved soon", he says.

"What are you planning?"

"Only to seek out an old teammate and await the arrival of my new body".

"You still plan on learning all the jutsu in the world? I thought you gave up that ridiculous dream long ago".

"Yes, and I believe you know my new vessel too, or have briefly met".

"Who have you marked?"

"Sasuke Uchiha".

"That weakling? Your judgment has slipped, Orochimaru".

"He's stronger then he looks".

"He's not stronger then Itachi'.

"But he has something Itachi lacks; ambition".

"Why are you really here? Surely not just to chat".

"I told you, I'm here to claim you", he says.

"Take a number", I mutter.

"I wish for you to join me".

"You don't own me anymore".

"Then I'll just have to steal you", he says.

"Good luck", I retort, "How are you supposed to do that if you can't even use your arms?"

"I never said I was alone".

I hear a rustle in the trees and glance up just as I feel a hard jab on my pressure point.

I wake up in what I figure to be a prison cell. I hear water dripping in the distance and I smell mildew. I feel a sharp pain as I move my shoulder and realize that it's been dislocated.

"Fuck", I mutter.

I snap my shoulder back in place and sit up. I move my leg a bit to be in a more comfortable position and hear a jingle of chains. I realize that my feet are chained to the wall. I can only move them a little without any pain. There aren't any windows in my cell, but my eyes adjust to the darkness. I'm the only person in the room, there's a door on the opposite side of the room. My chains' maximum length is two feet which is only 1/5 of the distance to the door. Escape is somewhat impossible.

I sigh and lay back down on my "bed". Staring up at the ceiling, my mind flashes back to the Akatsuki. They probably think I ran away. Or they're hoping I'm dead. Probably the second one. Will they rescue me? Unlikely. Will they even care. Only if it benefits them. The bastards.

I shield my eyes as the door opens. A dude a little older then me walks in. He has white hair, glasses, and a smirk on his face.

"Good evening, Mizuka. I am Kabuto".

"Good evening, asshole", I reply sweetly.

"Lord Orochimaru was right, you do have quite the mouth on you".

"Funny, he didn't say anything about you".

Kabuto frowns and he moves toward me. Just a little closer and I can slap the bitch. I watch as he summons chakra to his palms and he grabs my wrists at a frightening speed. I stifle a scream as I feel the muscles near my hand tear. This guy uses medical-ninjutsu. Smart . He then unlocks the shackles and, since I have trouble walking, walks me out of the room. He leads me down many twisty-turny walls, until we reach some random door with the number 213 on it. Kabuto knocks and some small girl answers.

"Is Matsuri available?" Kabuto asks.

"Yes, Lord Kabuto. Just wait a minute".

She returns a bit later with a girl around twelve. The girl, Matsuri I guess, has black hair about shoulder length. She's wearing woolen clothes and there's a smudge of dirt on her cheek.

"Yes, Lord Kabuto? How may I serve you?"

"Matsuri, this is Mizuka. She's one of the Master's "special" friends".

"Hello, Miss Mizuka. My name is Matsuri".

Turning to Kabuto I say, "I am not one of his friends", and turning to Matsuri, "Hey".

Kabuto ignores me and says, "You'll be here servant while she's here".

"Yes, Master Kabuto".

Kabuto walks off, but then turns off, "She'll be having dinner with Master Orochimaru at 10 o'clock. Make sure she's ready".

"Yes, sir", Matsuri chimes.

Kabuto then (FINALLY!) leaves and Matsuri takes me by the hand and leads me down the hall.

"First you should have a bath. Then we'll get you dresses and do your hair and make-up", she says.

"I'd rather I look the way I do, he doesn't deserve anything", I seethe.

"But Master Orochimaru is a kind person; he saved me from a life in the brothels".

"Trust me, the brothels would be kinder then he is by far", I reply.

"Please don't say those things about the Master," she says, "Do you need help bathing?"

"No thanks, Matsuri. I can bathe myself".

She leads me into a room surrounded by pools full of steaming water. Matsuri shows me to one of the pools. She shows me where my robe, towel, and washing utensils are. I dismiss her and undress. Stepping into the hot water, I can't help but sigh. After days on the road, I agree that I'm covered with dirt. I grab a sponge and lather myself with soap. Dipping under the water, I rinse all the soap and dirt from my body. Returning to the surface, I relax a bit. I swim around a bit letting the water heal all the wounds and bruises, as well as my mind.

After awhile, I decide that I'm clean enough for the "Master". I climb out of the pool and dry myself with the towel. Cloaking myself in a purple robe, I walk toward the door. Outside the door stands Matsuri, patiently waiting for me to finish.

"Oh, you look much better", she says.

"Yeah, nothing like a good bath to prepare for the gates of Hell", I reply.

Matsuri sighs in defeat and leads me toward some room.

"This will be your room, Miss".

She opens the door and leads me in. I freeze in amazement and shock. The room hasn't changed one bit. I bite my lip to stifle a scream. This was the room my Mother stayed in eight years ago. This is the room she was raped and died in. That bastard has a sick sense of humor.

Matsuri guides me over to a screen and pulls a kimono out of nowhere. It's an elegant black kimono. There's white lace tracing a few parts, but otherwise it's all black.

"Master Orochimaru has requested that you wear this at dinner", Matsuri says.

I sigh in defeat and let Matsuri capture me in the folds of cloth. Even I have to admit, I look good.

"You look beautiful, My Lady".

"Just call me Mizuka, please".

"Yes… Mizuka".

Then Matsuri spends hours brushing my hair. Brushing it, combing it, and making it shiny. She ties it up into a high bun, but leaves two strands of hair falling into my face. Next comes the joyful make-up. She powders, glosses, and covers my in goo.

When she's done, I look like a completely different person. While I'm dazed, Matsuri guides my feet into sandals and leads me out of the room. We walk down the hall a ways and stop in front on a large door with iron-wrought snakes covering it. Matsuri moves to knock, but I stop her hand.

"I'll go in unannounced", I say.

She nods and walks off. I take a deep breath and kick the door in.

"As elegant as ever", Orochimaru says.

"You know me. Gotta come in with a bang".

He smirks as I walk for the seat set for me. It's on the opposite end of the table, which is to my liking. I sit down and fix my icy glare upon the thing I loathe so much.

"You look even more stunning in the kimono. Is it to your liking?" he asks.

"I appreciate the thought and concern that went into it, but not you", I say carefully.

His mouth twitches and I smirk. Servants bring food and I observe the plethora of choices. Meats, noodles, breads, and, I observe dryly, pocky. He remembered my love of the food. He smirks at my observations and our battle of wills continues.

I eat little, keeping my attention on the good-for-nothing snake sitting across from me. That Kabuto rat feeds him like the baby he is.

"Mizuka, eat. You must be famished", he says.

"I'm afraid you stole me appetite", I retort.

I avoid the pocky **(No! Temptation!)** and focus on the meat instead. Hanging out with guys for months limits your choice of food. I bite into the fish, sheep, and pig with relish; enjoying every bite. I glare in between every tow bites, looking at the sonofabitch. He returns the glares with amusement and that ticks me off. When I decide I've eaten enough, I push my plate away.

"Done already?" asks Orochimaru.

"Yes", I say coldly.

"Very well. Kabuto you may leave".

"But-" Kabuto protests.

"I have some things to discuss with my guest".

Kabuto reluctantly leaves and Orochimaru stands and moves toward me. Instinctively I recoil, but I regain my composure. He sits down in the chair next to me and licks his lips with his extremely **(NOT AGAIN!)** tongue.

"I see you still have that disgusting thing".

"Cruelty is not a way to hide your pain. Let me help you".

"Help me? Help? You're the one who created the pain!" I say.

"And you are the one who nursed it into hatred," he replies, "Let me heal the wound I created".

"Your talents lie in destroying things, not healing them".

"But I can learn".

"Healing requires love, something you don't have".

"Ah yes, I came to that conclusion too. But it does not matter if I can love. What matters is, can I be loved?"

"You're crazy".

"Crazy about you".

"I'm going to pretend I didn't hear that".

"Your mother loved me".

"Loved you so much she had to kill herself you mean', I say.

"An unfortunate turn of events, but it brought me closer to you".

"Sure", I say sarcastically.

"I can bring your mother back to life", he says.

I pause and stop in shock. Mom? Back to life? Memories of her fill my head; her smile, her laugh, her hand on my head.

"Mom", I whisper.

"In fact I already did", he says.

At that moment a door opens and she walks in. She looks just like Mom, smells like her.

"Hello, my little Usagi", she says.

Usagi. My mom's nickname for me. I was her little baby rabbit. I'd forgotten about that. In fact I'd forgotten a lot of things about my mom.

"Mommy", I cry.

Tears roll down my cheeks as I run to her; Orochimaru forgotten. I embrace her and cry into her kimono.

"Mommy", I whisper, "Mommy, I missed you".

She holds me in her arms as I cry. The sobs wracking my body with violence. I cry her name a thousand times as the memories cloud my mind. I feel a hand on my shoulder and turn around. I feel as though I'm seven again.

"Daddy's here", Orochimaru whispers.

I can't resist the memories; I embrace the insanity. Orochimaru hugs my mother and me together, his arm's surrounding us. I wonder how they can do that? His arms don't work. But I don't care; I'm seven again and Mommy and Daddy love me…

Days pass in happiness, but this nagging feeling follows me everywhere. Something I've forgotten, but what? Every morning Mommy, Daddy, and I go for a walk and every evening Mommy and Daddy tuck me into bed. I play in the gardens with Daddy's snakes.

My favorite snake, Kirosu, is climbing up my arm, but I move my arm wrong and he bites me. I bite my lip and suddenly images stream though my mind. Akatsuki… Mommy dead… Daddy dead… Deidara… Orochimaru, I scream as the images flood my mind; my body frozen by fear. And then I remember.

"Usagi, what's wrong?" my imposter-mom says.

"Nothing Mother", I say innocently, as I finger a kunai, "Kirosu just bit me".

"Oh darling, do you want Mommy to make it better?"

"Yes, Mommy", I say sweetly.

My "mother" moves my wrist to her mouth to suck the blood away. At an amazing speed, I stab my kunai through her chest. Her eyes go wide in shock and she collapses; dead once again.

"You can come out now", I say.

"I knew it wouldn't last long. But I enjoyed while it did", Orochimaru says.

"Using a re-animation jutsu on my mother to make me trust you was smart, but Usagi is dead. I am not the fool I used to be".

"That may be but you are still my prisoner", he says.

"Not for long", I answer.

"I'll see you at dinner", he says.

I collapse soon after he leaves. I can't believe I fell for that. Bringing the dead back to life is impossible. Their bodies may move, but their souls are gone. I haven't changed at all. Laughing to myself (never a good sign), I walk off to prepare for .

"As beautiful as ever", Orochimaru says as I walk in the room and sit down.

My midnight blue with silver stars kimono matches my mood perfectly; I'm not in the mood to play. If I have to kill him to escape I'll do it. I eat my meat as usual and glare at Orochimaru and Kabuto. After the meal is done, I stand up and leave the room without a word. Once I reach my room, I fall on the bed; exhausted. I don't know why though. He couldn't have poisoned my food, could he? He's evil enough to do it. I struggle to move my legs, but they feel like lead weights, as do my arms.

"Fuck", I curse.

I hear the door open and try to look up to see who it is. Of course, it's Orochimaru. I try to scream, but my voice caves in. Move! Mizuka! Move! But my body is so weak. I can't summon any chakra.

"As you've probably noticed", he says, "You cannot move or use chakra".

I bite my lip in frustration and gather spit in my mouth. As he nears me I spit all my saliva at him. He blinks in surprise, but only moves closer. His face is an inch away.

"You are mine Mizuka. I made you and you are nothing without what I have given you".

He pulls a kunai out of my pouch with his tongue and puts it to my neck.

"Go ahead take the easy way out, like your pathetic mother".

I'm trembling in fear and hatred for this, this man. But he moves the kunai down to my right arm and pulls the sleeve up. He makes a deep cut and the crimson floods me arm.

"Spilling so much blood is such a waste", he says.

His tongue licks up the blood and he cuts my arm over and over again. And he keeps licking it up. I cannot move or protest, no matter how much I try. He moves on to the left arm, but pauses when he sees Hidan's name.

"So I'm not the only one to claim you", he says.

He ignores my left arm and moves up to my kimono. My heart is pounding at a million beats per second. His tongue licks my lips and I shudder. His mouth leans down until he touches my lips. Thankfully, the darkness offers an escape from this nightmare.

I wake up in extreme pain. It feels like I've been cut everywhere. Every time I try to move, my limbs cry out in agony. I can only guess what that did to me. And my guess is that **he raped me**. him. I try to move, but realize that I'm chained to a wall and also that I'm naked. .

I spend the day in this painful solitude until the door opens… and he comes in again.

"I see you're awake", he says.

I'm too weak to reply and I return to my dark refuge as his lips seek mine.

Days, weeks, pass in this living . I've given up all hop of rescue. If they wanted to save me, they already would have. I think that the tears have stained my cheeks and I'm always bleeding and bruised. He comes every night without fail and I wonder what his reasons are for this torture.

He just left and I feel the tears slide down my face. him. I snap at precisely this moment. I'm going to get out of here, even if I have to die. These chains are rusted; weak. Perfect. Gathering what little chakra I have left, I begin work on my escape.

It takes two more days, till the shackles break. I rub my wrists painfully, and notice the dark bruises surrounding them. I wobble at first when I try to stand, but I gain balance. I grab some weapons, food, and clothes. I walk out of my room. My escape goes somewhat smoothly because I only had to kill three people and knock fifteen people out.

As soon as I leave the lair, I take off running. My will to escape overcomes the pain and exhaustion as I run. But it catches up to me as I reach a clearing.

"Safe", I gasp.

I fall unconscious where I hit the ground. I run/walk for days as I try to gain my bearings. It's been so long that I can't remember where the hideout is. Um… where is it? I follow rivers and roads until I reach the crossroads between Konoha, that gambling town, Sunagakure, and a hot springs. I recognize the area; I need to head toward Sunagakure, but turn at the Lightning Tree.

I smile when I see the tree and immediately turn. The sun sets as I enter the forest, but I don't care. I take off running at shinobi speed; happy to be near home. Akatsuki… home? Yep, I must be crazy. My smile grows larger as the area becomes familiar. When I reach the big rock, my face splits into one gigantic smile. I release the lock on the "door" and walk down the genjutsu hallway. I release it and walk into the living room; no one. Kitchen also equals no one. They must be asleep.

I walk to my old room and open the door. No one's been in here for a while, about an inch of dust covers every surface. And then a wall of exhaustion hits me. I about fall right there, but somehow I make it to the bed. I happily fall into a deep and pleasant sleep- ALONE!!

**Rayne Says: So yes, Orochimaru raped her. Why? Because it is important to the story. My creative team constantly teases me they keep saying, "Orochimaru raped you! Ha! Ha!" But in my friend's fanfic, everyone gets raped by Orochimaru. It's not that he's evil... he's just sick. **


	10. Chapter 10

**Rayne Says: First of all I would like to apologize for the long wait, gomenesai. Bows To make it up, I have finally finished this chapter- yay! I will try to update as quickly as possible but I'm not sure how quickly- once a month at the slowest. **

**Special thanks and metaphoric cookies for the reviewers! **ShikaKibaShinoGal , Violets Dreamer , katarauchiha653719 , Ichisuki the ninja , sweetxxtemptation , Larn555 , Lybe , Kisame Hoshigaki the Scourg... , Hidan'sGirl247 , Gaaragirl312 , Tally Mai-chan , kpizkool ,and Ace Frost .

**I would love to thank all my reviewers, even if all you said was to update, because that's what made me update!**

**Answers to the questions:**

Tally Mai-chan : **You didn't ask a question, but I loved your comment! I'm glad I made you laugh (even if you were drinking Pepsi!) Your comment made my day!**

Gaaragirl312 : **I'm happy that you commented on almost every chapter! I'm also happy that you like Mizuka!**

Hidan'sGirl247 : **Maybe she is pregnant- but than again, maybe she's not! You'll see ; )**

**To My Faithful Reviewers Who Commented on Almost Every Chapter!: **ShikaKibaShinoGal , katarauchiha653719 , Ichisuki the ninja , sweetxxtemptation , Larn555 , Lybe , and Gaaragirl312 !! **Thank you, thank you, thank you!! Arigato!!**

* * *

**Normal Again?**

I stretch my arm and grin in happiness when I realize that I'm back at the Akatsuki. Yes! No one seems to know that I'm here. I sigh, but keep smiling anyway. I notice that I'm still wearing the kimono I was wearing a week ago. It's black with red slashes, suitable for my current environment.

I exit my room, not caring how I look, and walk down the hall. I'm looking forward to meeting everyone; even Itachi and Zetsu. I walk into the kitchen silently. Hidan is sitting at the table staring angrily at his cereal (what did the cereal ever do to him?); Kakuzu's fingering his money (or is it caressing?), and Deidara and Sasori are staring absentmindedly at the TV (home shopping network?). Kisame, Zetsu, Tobi, and Itachi aren't in the room. WHAT IN THE WORLD HAPPENED WHILE I WAS GONE!! Has the entire Akatsuki gone emo? It doesn't matter; I silently sneak up on Deidara and hug him from behind.

"Tobi, go away," he says.

"But I'm not Tobi."

He turns around and stares at me with very shocked eyes, "Sasori, I'm dreaming again, yeah." (Rayne: Aw, how sweet, he dreamed of Mizu)

"Then we're having the same dream," Sasori says.

"You're not dreaming Deidara," I laugh.

"Am I dead?"

"No, silly, of course you're not dead."

"Itachi, stop the genjutsu."

"How long is it going to take you to realize it is me?"

"It's really you?"

"Duh. Itachi could never pull off a genjutsu this beautiful."

"H-how are you alive? Itachi told us you were dead."

"Well, **Itachi**'s a **big fat stupid weasel**. You can never trust them."

"Actually I said she was probably dead if Orochimaru had her," Itachi says, stepping into the room.

"That bastard had her?" Hidan asks.

"Why yes that damn bitch had me," I say.

"Don't think about it, yeah. You're back that's all that matters," Deidara says.

He wraps his arms around my waist and kisses my forehead. I flinch. Biting my lip, I slip myself out of his arms and hold myself together.

"What happened to you?" Deidara asks, his voice rising in anger. "What did that bastard do to you, yeah?"

"Nothing, Deidei," I say, fake-smiling.

"You don't look like nothing happened," Itachi says dryly.

I guess he's right. Bruises and cuts cover almost every inch of my skin and I know my eyes are filled with fear.

"Just bad memories that's all. He was my mother's killer and he was the person who created my kekkai genkai."

"He was, yeah?" Deidara questions.

"Yeah, but who cares? I'm hungry," I say.

I make myself some burned bacon (burned to perfection) and eggs. Eating like a beast, I shovel in the food.

"Didn't he feed you?" Kakuzu asks.

"I ate like royalty, but there was the poison-"

"Poison?" Deidara squeaks.

"Um… it made it so I couldn't use chakra," I half lie.

Through all my fake-smiles and lies I feel as though someone's watching me. I look around the room and catch Itachi glaring at me. I've been back about ten minutes and he already hates me again. Great.

After I'm done with breakfast, I walk to Rei's office. I knock three times on the door before I'm admitted inside.

"So the rumors are true," he says.

"I'm back and ready for punishment."

"For what?"

"Didn't you think I ran away?"

"You came back."

"Yeah I did- wait a minute. You mean I could have escaped and you guys wouldn't have known it because you would have assumed I was either dead or still with Orochimaru?"

"Yes."

"Damn."

"You may return to work now. You are dismissed."

I start to walk toward the door.

"And Mizuka?"

"Yes?"

"Is there something you'd like to tell me?"

"No."

He nods his head and I walk into the hallway. Once I'm outside, I give a sigh of relief. For some reason being with Rei is so draining. I walk back to my room for a well-deserved shower.

Climbing in and letting the hot water wash away all of my worries, I feel as though I'm in heaven. I slightly wince when the water hits some of my more serious wounds. Giant finger shaper bruises cover my arms and legs. Cuts bleed anew as I stretch my skin. But the shower does what it's supposed to do and I feel reborn when I come out.

I put on my only un-Orochimaru outfit, wincing as it passes over bruises and cuts. I don't like how much skin it shows. You can clearly see the bruises on my sides and everywhere else. I pull my cloak off and hope that no one orders me to remove it.

I walk out of the bathroom, towel-drying my hair on the way. I smile when I notice Deidara sitting on the bed.

"Hey, Deidei."

"It seems like you're only a dream, yeah," he whispers.

"You know I'm not."

"You don't know what it was like thinking you were dead!" he says suddenly. "I thought I'd never see you again!"

With an unknown force he pushes me into the wall and kisses me fiercly. But my mind protests and my memories scream. As soon as he stops, I collapse on the ground and start sobbing.

"Mizuka, what's wrong?" he shouts.

"N-Nothing," I sob.

"How can nothing be wrong if you're crying, un?"

"I'm so happy," I lie.

How can I lie so easily? Has he really changed me so much? Why can't I tell Deidara what happened?

"You had me worried there, yeah," he sighs.

I wipe my eyes and pull the cloak tighter around me. What would Deidara think if he knew both Hidan and Orochimaru kissed me?

We walk into the living room where I get super-glomped by Tobi. Zetsu stands in the corner arguing with himself on whether or not to eat me. I sit with Deidara as we watch some pointless sitcom, but my mind is far away. I'm concentrating on keeping my cloak tightly around me.

"Deidara, I'll be back. I'm going to get us snacks. You want some popcorn?" I ask.

"Yeah, un," he replies.

I walk into the kitchen and slam my head into the oven.

"Trying to commit suicide, bitch?" Hidan asks.

I pull my head out of the oven and glare at him.

"No, just looking for your brains," I retort.

"Hmm, why are you wearing that cloak? It's not cold in here."

"Says the _**half-naked moron**_."

"Take the cloak off."

"No," I say.

"Yes, bitch," he commands.

"No, asshole."

He suddenly appears in front of me and tears the cloak away from my body. I try to use my hands to cover all of the skin showing, but I only have two.

"What the fuck did that bastard do to you?!" he yells.

He roughly grabs me by the wrist and drags me into living room. He holds me up by the arms for the entire Akatsuki to see.

"See what the bastard did to our servant?!"

Everyone's eyes gaze at all of the marks. My face is a mixture of rage and sorrow. I don't know whether to scream or cry. And what hurts me the most is Deidara's face.

He's in pain… and I'm causing it.

"You said nothing happened, yeah," he whispers quietly.

"Nothing did happen," I reply.

"You call that nothing?!" he screams, "Look at you! You're covered with his fingers!"

"Nothing happened, Deidara. Nothing."

He moves up to me and look me deep in the eyes. I can clearly see the hurt and anger… at me.

"You said you'd never lie to me."

"I didn't lie! Nothing happened!" I scream.

And then he slaps me hard across the face. My face contorts into sorrow. Deidara… hates… me. Hidan releases me from his iron grip and I crumple to the floor, breaking into tears. Huge sobs rack my body as the world ends.

"Deidara, you said- you said you loved me!"

"But apparently you don't love me, you whore."

I'm silenced by Deidara's cruel words. I came back to Hell for him. For him! I could have left but I stayed for him! Stayed to rot in Hell for him!

"I'll see if she's lying," Itachi says.

No… not him. Anyone but him. He grabs me by the neck and slams me into the wall.

"Mangekyo Sharingan."

Once again I return to the black and white Hell. My body feels numb; weak. Like the poison- shit! Itachi's going to see what happened! I wince in pain as I'm forced to relive every moment of my torture. I know Itachi's not going to go easy on me this time.

When it's over I'm panting and sobbing heavily. My body hurts all over and my mind screams for the sweet release of sleep.

"She's not lying," Itachi says.

W-What? Itachi's lying? For me?

"Then what happened, yeah?!" Deidara shouts.

"She refused to tell Orochimaru where our hideout was so he tortured her."

They all seem to believe Itachi's lie. Am I off that easily? Deidara moves toward me and I flinch. How could Deidara turn on me so suddenly? How dare he expect me to forgive him?

"Sorry, Mizuka," he mutters. "It was easier to believe that you didn't love me than to believe what might have happened, yeah."

"I can't believe you would think that I'd do that. Deidara, I love you and nothing is going to change that fact," I say.

We kiss each other, hesitantly, but I can feel the pure emotion that comes with the kiss. He loves me. And I love him.

…Something stirs in the darkness.


	11. Chapter 11

**Rayne Says: *readers prepare pitchforks, knives, kunai, and shuriken* Wait! Don't kill me! I updated! **

**Yes, you heard right. I updated. I finally found my prewritten (on paper) chapters for this story. I reread it and decided I didn't like it. Funny, huh? Heh, heh. So here's the newest chapter of Akatsuki Heartbreaker! **

**Also, thanks and much love to my faithful reviewers! I love you guys a whole lot!**

* * *

**Revelations**

It's been about three weeks since I returned to the Akatsuki. I haven't had to go on any missions and I've been rooming with Deidara, so it's all good.

"What's for breakfast, bitch?" Hidan asks.

"For you? Soap to wash out your dirty mouth."

"Seriously?"

"Fine. French toast and maple syrup," I reluctantly answer.

"Thanks, bitch," he says, sitting down.

I smirk and serve everyone's food, but I notice that Itachi's not here. "He's probably still asleep, I'll go wake him up," I announce.

"Prepare a tombstone," Hidan mutters.

I move down the hall until I reach Itachi's room. I turn the knob when he doesn't answer my knocks. His room is as clean as ever. What happens next brings crimson to my face, and it's not blood this time.

As soon as I walk into the room the bathroom door opens and Itachi walks out… half naked. Of course there's a towel around his waist, but I can't help but notice his well-developed abs. My face turns completely red and he dryly observes my presence. "Um, sorry. Breakfast's ready."

"Fine," he answers.

I walk out of the room, my face bright red and my heart pounding. My mouth has gone dry and my hands a tad bit sweaty. What the hell? I CANNOT like Itachi! NOT POSSIBLE! I calm down a bit and reenter the kitchen. "Hey Deidara, can you come over here?"

He walks over to me with a curious look on his face. When he's close enough I grab him by the collar and kiss him- deeply, passionately, and a little too enthusiastically. I let him go and we both look at each other, our breathing heavy and I hear some cat whistles.

"Get a fucking room!" Hidan yells.

"W-What was that about, yeah?" Deidara asks.

"No reason. I love you," I say.

It's only then that I notice Itachi standing right behind us and glaring bullet holes. "Hey Weasel, breakfast's on the table."

He says nothing and sits down. I sit down by Deidara and start eating, but then I feel weird, really weird. "Excuse me," I say, running to the bathroom.

"Cramps, bitch," Hidan says, grinning.

I flip him the middle finger and run into the bathroom. I slam the door and lock it, hoping that they aren't worried enough to kick the door down. Wait, worried? This is the Akatsuki we're talking about, right? Oh well. The weird feeling rushed over me and I lean over the toilet and puke up all of the French toast that I'd slaved over. When I come out I wobble a little bit, but regain my balance. I get some odd looks from the Akatsuki members, but I sit back down.

"Are you rebelling again?" Kakuzu asks.

"No, I probably got the stomach flu or something."

"Oh no! Tobi must help Mizu! Tobi will stay by Mizu's bed everyday and bring Mizu back to health!"

"Tobi, I'm fine."

"But Mizu is sick!"

"Tobi, shut up."

Tobi's face looks hurt for a second, but then he smiles again. He digs into his French toast with renewed vigor. "Tobi's a good boy!"

"Yeah, Tobi, whatever makes you happy."

I don't eat anymore, but clear the table once everyone's done. I set to work scrubbing away all the syrupy grime with a tiger's determination. "Damn you, scum!" I shout.

"Aw, that hurt my feelings, yeah."

"Not you," I laugh, "this stain refuses to come off."

"Oh, for a second I thought you didn't love me, un."

"I'll always love you," I say.

He wraps his arm around my waist and points to the stain. "Mind if I help, un?"

"No Deidara, this is my job. My job."

"But if I order you to let me help, you wouldn't be breaking the rules."

"Good point."

He grabs the stubborn plate and, using his mouth-hands, scrubs the plate clean.

"Question?" I ask.

"Yeah?"

"Can you taste with those?"

"Kinda, yeah."

"Ew! Gross!"

"Actually, I've never thought about that before, un."

"Really? I thought it was an obvious thing," I comment.

"You know what, yeah?"

"What?"

"You haven't seen my art," he says.

"Yes I have: when we fought."

"That doesn't count, yeah."

"Okay! I wanna see!"

"Good, un."

He leads me outside the lair and to a cliff. "Now you murder me?" I joke.

"No, un. Now art happens!"

He pulls a small bird out of his pocket and throws it over the cliff.

"Deidara! Stop wasting our natural resources!"

"Just watch, yeah," he sighs.

The clay grows into a giant bird that's waiting for us to jump on.

"Wow," I gasp.

"Hold onto me," he orders.

I dumbly hold onto his hand as he jumps onto the bird. He wraps his arms around my waist as we stand on the giant bird. "Are we seriously going to fly or is this just for looks?"

"We're going to fly, yeah."

"Cool!" I say joyfully.

We take off into the air and Deidara grasps me to him tightly. It's amazing! I never imagined that the world would be so different from this height. I feel whole, up here with Deidara flying above the world. I love my life.

Weeks pass by in a blur- flying, taking care of the Akatsuki, spending time with Deidara, and being the happiest I've ever been in my life. The only downer is the fact that I'm still puking every morning. This must be one killer stomach flu. Tobi is seriously worried for me. He even snuck into Konoha and stole about six gallons of cold medicine, but even that didn't help.

After my usual puke-fest, I exit the bathroom and walk into a body. Which happens to be Itachi's body.

"Um-"

"Leader wants to see you."

"Okay."

I follow Itachi down the hall to Rei's office. I expect Itachi to leave, but he goes in with me. Rei has a really serious look on his face and he's not smiling.

"What's wrong?" I ask.

"You mean you haven't noticed?" Rei says.

"Noticed what?"

"You've been throwing up every morning, correct?"

"Um, yeah, but it's probably just a cold."

"Itachi told me what happened while you were held captive by Orochimaru."

I freeze. Itachi told Rei? Rei! I'm doomed. **Return of the emo cloud**

"When did you have your last period?"

"Um… what?"

"Your period."

"Uh, two months ago?"

"So you have missed it, dammit," Rei curses.

Rei can curse? Wow. Wait- what's he saying? I can't be pre-pregnant! No way.

"You've been having morning sickness, not the flu. Mizuka, you're going to be having a baby."

"No way. I can't be having his baby. I won't allow it."

**(Rayne Says: Okay, this is the part where I broke off and redid the story. I'll be posting the original chapters someday. The story was very different than what it's going to be now. That's why I had writer's block! Um... back to the story!)**

"Would you prefer an abortion?" Rei asks.

"No! I-I don't know what to do. I'm only fifteen!!"

"You're only fifteen?" Itachi asks.

"Yeah! I'm way too young to be pregnant."

"Then you have two options," Rei says, "have the baby or don't."

"Wait, you're not going to send me off to some unknown place where I can raise my baby in peace and forget this ever happened?"

"No."

"Why not?" I whine.

"We may be S-ranked criminals, but we're not heartless."

"I was counting on the fact that you were heartless criminals so you would let me go!"

"You would leave Deidara?" Itachi comments.

"I could take him with me. He doesn't like it here anyway."

"We would hunt you down and kill you- pregnant or not."

"So you are heartless!"

"I never said that," Rei excuses.

"Whatever. So I'm knocked up, now what?"

"Now you have to tell everyone else."

"Please just banish me!"

"Abortion is always an option."

"Even I know it's too late for that! You're just looking for an excuse to kill me!"

"And if I were?"

"Then you're a big, fat, meanie-head!"

…

…

"That was immature- even for you."

"So? You deserved it!"

"Did I?"

"Yes, you did!"

"And how did I come to be a "big, fat, meanie-head"?"

"You want to kill me!"

"So do half of the people in this building."

…

"Oh my god, you're right!"

"You just realized that?"

"I thought you guys cared!"

"We do care, at least for ourselves."

"That's selfish!"

"So?"

"Someday you'll get karma up your ass!"

"Excuse me?"

"You heard me. Karma up your ass."

"Can we please get back on subject again," Itachi interrupts.

"What were we talking about again?" I ask.

"You're pregnant."

"I am?"

"Yes."

"That sucks."

"And you have to tell everyone."

"I hate my life."

"I hate your life too," Itachi says dryly.

"That's it! I'm tired of your "I'm-so-powerful-so-every-chick-should-love-me-'cause-I'm-so-damn-hot" attitude! You are not all that and a bag of chips! Even you're little emo brother is better than you! And he has a damn revenge complex!"

"Are you done?"

"For now."

"Good, now go tell everyone that you're pregnant."

"But I don't wanna."

"Too bad."

"You can't make me," I say, sticking my tongue out.

"But _I_ can. I order it, therefore it is," Rei commands.

"Aren't you feeling god-like today? Well let me tell you Mr. WannabeGod, you're not really God!"

"Itachi, take her away."

"No wait, gasp, I'll do it myself! Ain't that a novel idea?!" I say, walking out of the door and stomping down the hall. I walk into the living room and sit next to Deidara on the couch.

"What did Leader want, un?"

"Nothing at all."

"I don't think it was nothing, yeah."

"Well we're all entitled to our own thoughts and opinions, great job exercising that right."

"Your sarcasm isn't helping, yeah."

"It isn't supposed to be."

"Please, can you just tell me, un?"

"Nope."

"Come on, it'll be a secret, just between you and me?"

"Well-"

"SECRETS? TOBI LOVES SECRETS! TOBI IS A SUPER SECRET KEEPER! LIKE HOW HE PROMISED TO KEEP IT A SECRET ABOUT THAT ONE TIME KAKUZU AND HIDAN GOT SO DRUNK AND THEY STARTED MAKING OUT! TOBI'S A GOOD BOY! TOBI EVEN KNOWS VICTORIA'S SECRET AND-"

"Who's Victoria?" I ask.

"Beats me, yeah," Deidara replies.

"-ONE TIME TOBI WENT INTO A STORE AND IT WAS FILLED WITH UNDERWEAR AND LADY THINGS! TOBI FOUND A COOL HAT AND HE PUT IT ON AND IT LOOKED SUPER COOL! BUT THEN EVERYONE WAS LAUGHING AT TOBI! TURNED OUT TOBI WAS WEARING A THING CALLED A BRA! DOES MIZU WEAR A BRA? WHAT COLOR IS IT? CAN TOBI SEE? WHAT SIZE IS IT?"

"Tobi you pervert," I say, chucking a pillow at his head and knocking him out.

"I didn't know the little guy had it in him, yeah."

"Me either."

"Who would have thought, un?"

"Who would have thought what, fag?" Hidan says walking into the room.

"Tobi's a pervert," I answer.

"I didn't ask you, bitch. I asked the fag."

"What Mizuka said, yeah."

"You people are no fucking help. By the way, have you seen fucking Kakuzu? I can't find that bastard anywhere."

"Have you looked in the vaults?"

"Yeah."

"His room?"

"Yeah."

"Your room?"

"Why the hell would Kakuzu be in my fucking room?"

"To steal your stuff and put it on eBay."

"Oh fuck!" Hidan yells, running out of his room.

"Why didn't you just tell him that Kakuzu was in the kitchen, yeah?"

"It's more fun this way."

"Oh."

…Several moments later…

"Bitch, that bastard wasn't in my room. He was in the fucking kitchen!"

"Oops, my mistake."

"You did that on purpose!"

"No I didn't."

"Whatever, bitch."

Hidan sits down and starts viciously shining his scythe. Seconds later, Kisame comes in the room and joins Deidara and me on the couch. He strikes up a conversation- more like an argument- with Hidan. Kakuzu comes in and starts searching through the couch cushions for money. Zetsu phases out of the wall and reawakens Tobi to ask him why he was sleeping on the floor. Sasori comes in and silently stands in a corner, where Itachi shortly joins him.

I wonder what's going on?

"Oh yeah, what were you going to tell me earlier, un?" Deidara asks.

"Oh, um, I'm pregnant," I say.

"What? I can't hear you, yeah?"

"I'm pregnant!"

"What?!"

"I'M PREGNANT!" I yell.

…

The entire room goes silent.

"That didn't go as well as I planned," I say.

"You got knocked up? Who the fuck would knock you up?"

"I-I can't tell you."

"Orochimaru," Itachi says.

"What?"

"Orochimaru raped her. The information was not relevant until she became pregnant."

"Fuck."

"That's all you guys have to say?" I ask.

"What do you want us to say? We're sorry that you were raped and are now pregnant?" Kisame asks.

"Yes!"

"Okay then, I feel sorry for you."

"Thanks, Fish Stick."

* * *

**Rayne Says: Okay, there's your update, did you like it? I'll try to update every Friday/Saturday, but that's not guarenteed. **

**Also: I'm holding a small competition. Tobi's extremely long rant about Victoria's Secret and Hidan and Kakuzu making out is the prompt. I would like a one chapter story about those if you can. Post them on your own account, but give me credit, please. Message me the URL and I'll read it. The one that makes me laugh or cry the most wins. Um... prize? I'll fave your story, review, and paste the code on my page. You'll also get comments at the beginning of a chapter of this story! Deadline is: 2/14/09 (yeah, I know romantic).**

**Also: I can't decide on the children. That's why I'm asking you readers for help! Should Mizuka have a**

**1) boy**

**2) girl**

**3) twins with either**

** a) both boys**

** b) both girls**

** c) one girl and one boy**

**Please help me! Much appreciated! Please review (or you'll get karma up your butt! Joking!)**


	12. Chapter 12

**Rayne Says: Wow, two chapters in one day? Good thing these are prewritten. The opinionated contest for the gender and type of Mizuka's child/ren is still up for debate. I'll tell you when it's too late. Enjoy!**

* * *

**Property**

I'm walking down the hallway, looking for Deidara, when Itachi magically poofs out of nowhere and scares the bejesus out of me. "God Weasel! You almost gave me a fucking heart attack! What do you want?"

"I have some unfinished business with you."

"Excuse me?"

"Follow me," he says.

"Why the hell should I?"

He flashes his Sharingan and I dutifully follow him. I don't really feel like dying today. We twist and turn down the hallways until he reaches a door. I don't recall having seen this door before. Itachi walks in and I follow him. I walk to the center of the room and stand impatiently, waiting for him to get this over with. He closes the door and _locks_ it.

"Why the hell are you locking it?" I ask.

"I wouldn't want anyone to interrupt our conversation," he answers smoothly.

"Fine, what do you want to talk about?"

He doesn't say anything for a while, but he moves toward me and grips my arm. He lifts up the sleeve of my left arm and stares at Hidan's name forever engraved upon it.

"Through your memories and from some research I've done, I have some information about your supposed blood bond with Hidan."

"Supposed?"

"You're not blood-bonded with him."

"What? Why not?"

"To put it simply- you did not have sex with him."

"Why is that relevant?"

"Without it the ceremony is not complete. Unless you plan on having sex with him in the next two weeks or so, the bond should wear off."

"Thank God."

I walk back toward the door, but turn around and look at Itachi/ He's staring at me with a look I can only describe as- loneliness? "Um… thanks Weasel."

"Why don't you call me by my name?" he asks.

"Um, okay, Uchiha."

Suddenly he flashes in front of me and grabs me by the throat. Great, I'm going to die today. Everything was going so well too!

"Never. Call. Me. That," Itachi says through clenched teeth.

"Why not?" I ask. "It is your name."

"I severed those bonds a long time ago," he answers.

"Okay, I'm sorry, Itachi," I say quietly.

He pauses and sets me back down on the blessed floor. "Thanks," I say, turning back to the door. I start to turn the lock when I hear a whisper _right next to my ear_.

"Say it again," he whispers.

"Itachi," I answer, "you're really freaking me out. Please back away from my body in the next ten seconds or so help me I'll do something violent."

"I like violence," he silky voice replies.

"I can tell," I say dryly.

…

"It's been ten seconds. You haven't done anything."

"Your point?"

"You promised me violence."

"I did, didn't I?"

"You did."

"Okay then," I say. I quickly drop down and sweep my leg out to knock him down. Strangely enough, this works. I seriously didn't think the great Uchiha Weasel would fall for something as basic as that. "How's this for violence?"

I hover over him and suddenly he grabs my arms and our positions are reversed. Now, he's hovering over me. "Um, Itachi? Can you please let me go now?"

"No."

"Why not?"

"I haven't punished you."

"Punished me?"

"Yes," he answers, his lips just inches away from mine, his breath tickling my skin.

"What form of punishment are we talking?" I tease.

What the hell? Am I flirting? With Itachi?

"Hidan doesn't hold possession over you anymore. You are fair game."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"Anyone can claim you. Whoever gets there first wins, and you just happen to be the prize."

"Is that what you're doing? Claiming me?"

"Yes."

"How so?"

"Like this," he answers, pressing his lips to mine. They're hot and moist and he licks my lips for entrance. I grant it and our tongues wrestle for a short time before he pulls away.

"Itachi?"

"Yes?"

"What does this mean?" I ask.

"It means that you are mine…"

...

...

"Itachi."

"Itachi."

"Itachi."

"Mizuka, you need to wake up now, un," I hear a voice say.

"Huh? Itachi?"

"No, it's Deidara, yeah. Why would you think I was that stuck-up, un-artistic bastard?"

I open my eyes and notice that Deidara looks a little jealous.

"Were you dreaming about Itachi, yeah?"

"Um… no."

"I think you were. You kept saying his name, un."

"It's because I dreamt that he was killed by a pack of rabid weasels in a twist of ironic fate," I lie.

"Oh."

"So why did you wake me up?"

"Breakfast time."

"Oh, I guess that's important. Give me a couple of minutes and I'll be there."

"Okay, un," he replies.

I walk into the bathroom and stare into the mirror. Why the hell would I be dreaming about Itachi? I can't like him, can I? No, absolutely not. He's just a stupid, powerful, know-it-all, tattletale, big fat meanie head who happens to be good-looking. I can agree with myself on the fact that he _is_ good-looking, but then again so is most of the Akatsuki. His personality is also a total dud, who wants to hang with a guy who never talks. Not me.

I clear those thoughts away to make sure that I'm not thinking them when I go to breakfast so that Itachi won't assume things. Yes, we mustn't have Weasel assuming things. I brush through my hair and put on my outfit.

I fake a smile and walk to the kitchen. Since Sasori is on a mission I get to fix the breakfast (even though sometimes it doesn't come out quite so edible). I start scrambling eggs in a pan while singing what I call "The Egg Scrambling Song".

"Oh this is how we scramble the eggs, scramble the eggs, scramble the eggs! This is how I scramble the eggs, 'cause I'm so totally awesome!"

"Tobi likes that song! Tobi's going to sing that song all day long! Tobi's going to sing to Hidan first!"

So Tobi goes off to face certain death.

…Several verses of "The Egg Scrambling Song" later…

"Tobi if you don't fucking stop I'm going to shove your own foot up your ass!"

"Oh! Tobi wants to see- no! Not like that! Tobi does not like that!" Tobi's screams fill the building as he experiences the feeling of his own foot up his butt. I don't envy him a bit.

When the eggs are done, I cover them to keep them warm and start working on the hashbrowns. I almost burn them, but they come out as crispy. I try to cook bacon, but end up almost setting the kitchen on fire (again). I set the table, poor the drinks, and set the food down. "Come and get it!" I yell.

Suddenly, Kisame is at the table shoveling food onto his plate.

"Hey! Save some of that for other people!"

"Then you can make more," he grumbles.

"Why don't you?"

"'Cause it's your job."

"Not voluntarily," I say.

"Too bad."

"You're mean," I accuse.

"I'm Akatsuki."

"Deidara's not mean."

"Deidara is a fag," he replies, "and- hey!"

Deidara walks by and swipes a piece of Kisame's bacon. "I'm not gay."

"Yeah!" I say, sticking my tongue out at Kisame. "You're just jealous because no one would love a whale boy!"

**Emo cloud descends upon Kisame**

"That's a sensitive subject with him, yeah."

"Oh, um, I'm sorry. I really do like the color blue, you know. It's so… blue?"

"I don't think you're helping, un."

"Um… eggs?"

"Sure," Deidara says, sitting down in his usual spot, "if you'll serve me?"

"Of course!"

I lean down and give him a healthy helping of everything on the table. As I'm starting to go back up Deidara quickly kisses my cheek. I start blushing and quickly leave the room. I happen to walk right into Hidan. He starts to walk by me, but I grasp his arm.

"What, bitch?"

"Um… about blood bonds? Do you need to have sex for them to work?" I ask.

"Why? You not getting any?"

"It's not that. Can you please say yes or no?"

"Yeah, you need to bang for it to work. Guess that works out for you, huh?"

"Um, I guess so. Thanks Hidan."

"Think nothing of it, bitch."

He walks by me and into the dining room. So that makes three out of nine. Sasori's not here, Tobi has his foot up his butt, and Rei's probably in his office. Where are the other three?

I begin walking down the halls, which makes my heart beat faster because this is freakishly similar to my dream. "Hello? Zetsu? Kakuzu? Weasel? Breakfast's ready!" I call.

Suddenly a shape morphs out of the wall and frightens me. "Oh hey Zetsu, breakfast's ready."

"Okay, thank you/ **Why don't you be our breakfast? Such nice, pale skin. So tasty/ **No, no. Mustn't do that."

He keeps muttering to himself as he walks away. One down, two to go. Who's next? An idea flashes through my mind and I shout, "Kakuzu! Tobi's setting money on fire because he's a pyromaniac!"

Kakuzu appears the second after I finish my sentence, his eyes wild. "Where is that little punk? I told him if he touched my money one more time I'd chop of his hands!"

"He's in the kitchen," I answer.

Kakuzu goes off to save his precious money from nonexistent danger. Now to find Itachi, the person I don't really feel like seeing today. He's so lucky that I somewhat care for his well being. I wander down the hallways calling out his name and searching, but to no avail. A familiar feeling takes hold of me and I start to follow it. These hallways look familiar.

I stop in front of a door and, feeling that it would be polite, knock. Nobody answers. "Dammit Weasel, answer!" I yell. Nothing. I pause and take a deep breath.

"Itachi, please open the door."

The door opens, held by the angel of death himself. "Yes?"

"Breakfast's ready."

"Thank you."

"You're welcome."

I turn away and start walking down the hall, but am stopped by someone's hand around my wrist. "What are you doing?" I ask.

"You said my name," he replies, totally ignoring my question.

"Yes I did. Now what do you want?"

This is starting to freak me out big time. It's way too much like my dream.

"You talked to Hidan about your blood bond," Itachi says. "Why did you believe me?"

"I didn't but- hey! Why were you messing with my dreams?"

"Your dreams?"

"Yeah, in my dream last night you told me that and then you, um, nevermind."

"What happened next?" he asks, amusement obvious in his voice.

"I'm not telling you," I say.

"Then will you let me wager a guess?"

"Go right ahead."

"This happened," he says, pressing his lips to mine.

* * *

**Rayne Says: Oh, slight cliffhanger! I'm so mean! I bet you thought the beginning was real, didn't you? How will Mizuka react to Itachi's kiss? Tune in and find out!**


	13. Chapter 13

**Rayne Says: Yes, I realize that I haven't updated for a couple of weeks. Sorry. I had finals and then a break from thinking. I'm back to work on this! I have a story line in progress working in my head. Voting on the gender and number of Mizuka's kid/s is still up. It'll be up until birth day. Read and Review! Pwease?**

* * *

**Passion**

Itachi presses me and into a wall and I find it impossible to escape. His lips crush mine and bruise them. I whimper in pain and he presses his body to mine.

"Itachi… let… go," I gasp.

"No," he whispers.

I summon chakra to my hands and push him away as hard as I can. He staggers back a little but quickly regains his balance.

"That wasn't nice," he says.

"What- What the hell was that?"

"What do you think it was?"

"A momentary lapse in judgment."

"No."

"Then you're drunk?"

"I am not," he answers.

"Then what else could it be?"

"Is there anything wrong with a kiss?"

"When it's from you!"

I can clearly see the hurt in his eyes after I say that. "Look, I'm sorry. But I love Deidara. Not you, Itachi."

"I see," he says quietly.

"Do you?"

"Then I must apologize for my behavior."

"You don't need to."

"I will. I am sorry, Mizuka."

He walks away. Itachi just said my name? And… he kissed me! What is with these Akatsuki guys and kissing me? First there was Deidara, then Hidan, and now Itachi? Who's next? Kisame?

I sigh and slump down on the floor. I don't want to go back in there. Deidara will notice something and assume that Itachi did something. He'll die trying to beat the crap out of Itachi (not that I don't have faith in Deidara's abilities, Itachi's just a power freak).

I put my hand on my stomach and finally remember the fact that I'm pregnant. How could I forget that fact again? I wonder if it'll be a boy or a girl? What will I name it? Until I find out I guess I'll just call it Baby.

"Hey Baby. It's your mommy. I know you probably cannot hear me right now, but if you can I just want you to know that I love you very much and I'll do whatever it takes to protect you. I promise."

For some reason that makes me feel much better.

I stand up and navigate my way back to the kitchen, only to find it empty. "Where did you guys go?"

No one answers. I walk into the living room and discover that it's empty too. I lay down on the couch and stare up at the ceiling. I wonder if they're having a top-secret meeting? Eh, it's a possibility.

I continue staring at the ceiling until I begin to feel drowsy. I shut my eyes and let sleep consume me.

In my dreams I'm sitting in a rocking chair holding a bundle in my arms. My gaze shifts down the bundle and I gasp. There in my arms is my baby, but it doesn't look anything like me. It's as if Orochimaru shrank down to a foot and wrapped himself in blankets. A long tongue comes out of the baby's mouth. I feel bile rise up in my throat. I want to scream. I want to throw this _thing_ as far away from me as I can. A hand rests on my shoulder and pulls me close, "Our child," Orochimaru whispers in my ear.

I wake up screaming.

Deidara is standing above me, holding me down as I struggle. There's a scratch down the side of his face. I stop struggling and pant for breath. Sweat glistens on my forehead. I wipe it away with my hand, which is shaking. For some reason, I want to cry.

"Are you okay, yeah?" Deidara asks.

"Um… yeah," I reply. "Just a dream and some pregnant lady hormones."

"Is Mizu okay? Does Mizu need medicine?" Tobi yells in the background.

"No, I'm fine. Really," I say, looking into Deidara's unbelieving eyes.

"Fine, un. You should eat something."

"I will. Don't worry about me, Deidara. I'm just pregnant."

"Okay, but I have to tell you something, yeah."

"What is it?"

"I have a mission, yeah."

"Oh. How long will you be gone?"

"About a week, un."

"Is anyone else going?"

"Yeah- me, Hidan, and Itachi."

Wait- all of the guys that have kissed me are going? Isn't that a bit weird?

"What's the mission?" I ask.

"I can't tell you, un. Top-secret."

"Oh, that's okay."

"We're leaving tomorrow morning, yeah."

"Do I have to go on this mission?"

"No. Leader said that because you are pregnant, you're being forced to stay here, yeah."

"I want to go with you though!"

"Stay here and keep the baby healthy and happy, yeah."

"The baby will be happy with you," I answer.

"I'm sure he'll be fine, yeah."

"How do you know it's a he?" I ask.

"I don't, but we need to give the kid a gender. We can't keep calling it the Baby, yeah."

"It makes sense, but I'll miss you."

"I'll miss you too, yeah," he says, gently pressing his forehead against mine and wrapping his arms around my waist.

Deidara is so different from Itachi. Deidara is like water, calm and soothing. Itachi is like fire, intense and passionate. No wonder they don't get along.

He unwraps his arms and stares at me for a moment before smiling. " I love you, Mizuka. Never forget that, un."

"I won't. I love you too."

We share a small kiss before he walks away to get ready for his mission. I sigh and sit back down on the couch. That dream was so vivid, so real. What if that really happens? I don't want my baby to look like a mini-Orochimaru.

Which brings me back to the question at hand. Why the hell did Orochimaru rape me in the first place? He had plenty of women there to satisfy his needs, so why me? I'm not very pretty; I'm short, slightly flat chested, and I lost my virginity on a mission. What could it be? The only thing he was interested in at first was my kekkai genkai. What if- that's it!

His experiments when I was seven were to see if an implanted and scientifically created kekkai genkai could be inherited from generation to generation. That's why he knocked me up!

I sit up and know what I have to do. I run down the halls until I reach Rei's office. I don't even bother knocking, I just burst in. " Rei, I know why Orochimaru knocked me up! He wants my children to inherit the kekkai genkai! It's all an experiment!" I yell.

Rei sits calmly at his desk, calmly staring at me. "Are you sure of that?" he asks.

"It's the only reason."

"That produces a problem."

"Why?"

"He'll come for the child," he replies.

"No," I gasp.

"He'll want results."

"I won't let him take my baby!" I shout.

"Then what will you do if he does? Will you give up the child or let the Akatsuki suffer?"

"I- I don't know."

"Exactly why that child is a threat."

I slide to the ground and draw my knees to my chest. "I'm only fifteen, I don't know what to do."

"Frankly, neither do I."

"What?" I ask.

"Nobody in here knows anything about pregnancy or child labor. There's a definite chance that you and the baby could die during the birth."

"What'll I do?"

"I am not sure."

"You've got to have some ideas!" I say, exasperated.

"I have one, but it'll be dangerous."

"Please tell me!"

"Konohagakure is noted for its hospital and medical ninjutsu. They have a new Hokage whose ability has been praised for years. It will be a risk if you go and live there while you are pregnant. There is, however, a better chance of survival."

"I'll do it!"

"However," he adds. "Konoha shinobi have already seen you. You won't be able to use a transformation jutsu and maintain it while you are pregnant. They would associate you with the Akatsuki and would interrogate you viciously. Otherwise, I can't be able to trust you to be able to come back. I would have to send one of my men with you and most of them are not exactly good at keeping their identities hidden for some time."

"Please, sir. Please let me go. I'll go with someone- anyone!"

"Allow me some time to think this over."

"Yes," I reply.

I exit the office only to bump into a solid object. This solid object happens to be Itachi. Damn.

"Um… sorry," I whisper.

"No need to apologize."

"Oh, okay."

He walks into Rei's office and I stare at the door for a little while before I walk back to my room. I've decided to take a shower. I strip off my clothes and turn the water to scalding. I step inside and gently massage shampoo and conditioner into my scalp. When I'm done I start to wash my body, but I'm frozen by the image of Itachi and me kissing.

Then I remember Itachi shirtless, with those fantastic abs. I wonder what it would be like to touch them? To run my hands up and down his body? To kiss him anytime I felt like it? To have power over the Itachi Uchiha?

The water goes cold and shocks me out of my fantasizing. I shake my head and viciously scrub my skin raw.

Stupid Weasel.

* * *

**Like it? Hate it? Let me know! **


	14. Chapter 14

**Rayne Says: Gosh it's been a while since I updated this story. Like ages... Anywho I have great news! I know this how the story ends. Therefore, who Mizuka ends up with, the gender and number of her kids, and names! And... (drumroll please) there's going to be a sequel!!! Yay! So read on! Also, the pregnancy is a major part of the story.**

* * *

**Intrigue**

I spend the night wrapped in Deidara's arms, all the while feeling unfaithful because I'm remembering Itachi's scorching kiss. Otherwise, I sleep peacefully and I don't have any nightmares.

When I wake up I'm alone. I immediately grope around the bed for Deidara, but he's not there. Instead my hand wraps around a sheet of paper. I hold it in front of my eyes and read it.

_Dear Mizuka,_

_You look so beautiful when you sleep. Sorry I couldn't stay_

_until you woke up but Hidan's so impatient._

_Remember, I love you!_

_Love,_

_Deidara_

I clutch the note in my hand and sigh. I didn't get to say goodbye. Damn. I get up and immediately throw my guts up. Note to self: leave crackers by the bed.

After I'm done puking, I go into the kitchen and make breakfast for what few members we have. As I'm clearing the table I recognize a familiar redhead standing by the couch.

"Hey Sasori, you're back," I say.

"Yes. How are you?"

"Fine."

"And the baby?"

"Good."

"That's nice to know."

"Why do you even care?" I ask.

"I don't like it when tools are defective."

"Is that what I am to you? A tool?"

"If you remember correctly, I originally wanted you as a puppet. The offer still stands."

"Um… thanks?"

"You're welcome," he says, walking toward Rei's office.

Sometimes Sasori freaks me out.

I sit down on the couch and rest a hand on my stomach. "Well baby, let's hope that Rei lets us go to Konoha, huh?"

Sasori glides back into the room and lazily makes a come hither movement with his hand.

"Yeah?"

"Leader wants to see you."

"Really?" I ask, excited.

"Yes."

I follow him to Rei's office where he knocks once, listens, and then let's me in.

"Good morning, Mizuka," Rei greets.

"You too," I reply.

"I've come to a decision."

"And?"

"You may go."

"Yes!" I shout joyously. "Thank you so much!"

"However, I have also chosen your partner."

"Who is it?" I ask.

"Me," a familiar voice says from behind me.

I turn around, "B-But you're supposed to be on a mission."

"I was better suited for the job than anyone else was," Itachi says.

"You _did_ say anyone," Rei comments.

"I didn't think you would take someone off a mission."

"Itachi was only the back-up. He knows Konoha better than anyone and he can maintain a believable transformation for the longest."

"I guess so," I mumble.

"You shall leave tomorrow morning," Rei commands. "You can come up with your story on the way there."

"Thanks," I say.

I walk out of the room and Itachi follows silently. As soon as we're out of Rei's hearing range, I push Itachi into the wall. "What are you playing?"

"I'm not playing anything."

"You overheard us yesterday, didn't you?"

"You are very loud; it was hard not to hear."

"You didn't have to volunteer!"

"He wasn't going to let you go."

"What?"

"If I hadn't volunteered you wouldn't be going at all."

"You're lying!"

"I'm not. What reason would I have to lie?"

"Why would Rei not let me go?" I question.

"As long as you do not hinder the Akatsuki's goals you may live. This wish of yours straddles the line."

"I-I don't understand," I say, crumbling to the floor. My mind can't process the fact that without Itachi my child would most likely die. Why is he being so nice to me?  
"Why are you doing this?" I whisper.

"Personal interest," he replies.

"I already told you, I love Deidara-"

"I know that, but you never gave me a chance did you?"

"You've been a complete ass to me since the moment we met. I don't need to get to know you!"

"You don't see it, do you? Are you that blind?"

"What am I supposed to be seeing, huh?"

"I'm a completely different person when I'm alone with you. I can be myself."

"I don't care," I say, standing up and walking down the hall.

"I think you do. I think you care a lot," he says softly.

I walk into my room and collapse of my bed. What the hell does Itachi mean? He's no different than he is normally when he's alone with me. Right? My mind starts flashing through the memories that contain any smidgen of Itachi in them. Come to think of it—he's right. He always seems relaxed around me. His chakra is less tense and hostile; in fact it's down right calm. When I tried to escape he was the only one I didn't fight with physically (besides Rei and Tobi). Why didn't I ever notice?

I try to concentrate on the feelings that I have for Deidara, but it's hard to focus. Do I really love Deidara?

Why am I questioning this?

It doesn't matter. I won't even get to see Deidara for seven months. Unfortunately, I will have to see Itachi. Ugh.

When did my life get so complicated?

I stare at the ceiling, my hand resting on my belly. I love this baby, but it's seriously screwing up my life. I can't fight, can't train, and I have to be near Itachi for an extended period of time without being able to protect myself very well. Is this kid trying to get me killed?

I sigh and get up to pack. What do you take on an extended mission to a ninja village when you're partner happens to be a guy who scares you? In answer to my question I pack a lot of weapons. Upon remembering that I'm posing as a civilian I take out weapons that scream, "Ninja!" Which leaves me with some kitchen knives. Great. I put a few items of clothing in my pack, knowing that I'll have to buy maternity clothes pretty soon. I pack a few books to read on the way and decide that I'm done. I hadn't realized until now how little I own.

I set my bag by the door and decide to eat. I walk into the kitchen where there is thankfully no one. I fix myself two cartons of lime chicken ramen and impatiently wait for them to be done. I'm eating more than I normally would since I'm eating for two now. When I'm done I walk into the living room and flip through channels until I find something slightly interesting to watch.

I spend the next three hours boring myself to death. It seems to work because by four o'clock I'm tired. I turn the TV off and walk back to my room. I lay back down on my bed and think of a few extra things I might need for the journey to Konoha. An idea strikes me and I start wandering through the halls until U reach a door. I knock on the door and wait for an answer. None comes.

"Um, Zetsu? It's Mizuka. Can I talk to you?" I ask hesitantly.

"Yes?" a voice asks, starting me. I whirl around and face Zetsu.

"Do you have any plants that might help ease my morning sickness?"

"Yes/**Not that we'll give you any**."

He glides by me and opens the door from the inside. I hesitantly follow him and gaze around my surroundings. I've never been in Zetsu's room before. His is plain and unassuming; the only thing that clearly says that it's Zetsu's is the amount of plants. Plants of every color and type. Big plants and little plants. The air is fragrant and overwhelming with the aroma of so many plants

Zetsu wanders over to a particular row and begins searching for something. He returns and gives me a small batch of plants.

"These will help/**or kill you hopefully**," he says, also handing me some written instructions.

I nod my head and leave the room. I pack the plants carefully away and lay back down on my bed and close my eyes. I'm on the edge of falling asleep when I hear a knock on my door. I lazily stand up and wander over to the door and open it. I gaze up at Kisame with an incredulous look.

"What?" I snap.

"Sorry to wake you, but Itachi wants to speak with you."

"Too bad. I'm tired."

"Can't you just cooperate with me?" he asks.

"Nope," I say, going back to my bed and nestling under the covers. I'm startled back awake when a pair of scaly hands grabs me. "Kisame! Let me go!"

"Listen, Itachi told me to bring you to him by any means necessary."

"Uh!" I groan, giving in and nestling into Kisame's arms, trying to go back to sleep. Thankfully my body adjusts and I begin dozing. That is, until Kisame drops me onto a bed. I force my eyes to stay shut, assuming that I'm in Itachi's room, and cuddle myself into the bed.

"Was she much trouble?" Itachi's voice asks.

"Eh, she was a bit cranky when I woke her up."

"Thank you, Kisame."

I hear the door close and manage to keep my eyes glued. I feel Itachi come closer, but resist the urge to snap up and run away. I'm a big girl. Big girls don't run away from overgrown Weasels. Big girls don't panic at the sound of soft breathing. And big girls most certainly don't scream when Weasels starts playing with their hair. Of course, I did scream.

He instantly removes his hand from my hair and eases away. I sit up and glare at him. "Okay, I'm awake. Now what do you want?"

"You still have to spend the night in a member's room," he states.

"Then I'll room with Tobi, not you."

"Leader thought it best that you become used to my constant presence. We are going to spend the next six and half months together after all."

"Don't remind me."

" I do not want you to mistake me for an enemy and try to attack me."

"Try? Please, I would be sure to wound you in some way," I comment.

"I wouldn't doubt that if you weren't pregnant, however you are."

"Whatever, is that all you wanted?"

"We need to discuss our cover story."

"Can't we do that tomorrow?" I whine.

"Now would be best."

"Actually, it wouldn't."

"Why not?"

"In case it's not obvious, I'm exhausted."

"A ninja must learn to overcome exhaustion."

"Too bad I never became a genin."

"Why not?"

"Daddy thought it best to keep me for himself."

"Then how did you learn jutsu?"

"That's a secret I don't feel like telling you."

"Very well."

Wow. If he were Deidara he probably would have pestered me until I told him.

"Can I go to sleep now?"

"Perhaps," he says, a coy smile upon his lips. I do not like the look of that smile. What if he's thinking of—ew. Oh God, Mizuka, stop thinking now.

I steal a blanket and walk to a corner, only to feel a warm hand wrap around my wrist and jerk me back to the bed.

"You aren't sleeping on the floor," he orders.

"And I'm not sleeping in the same bed as you."

"I never stated that I would be in the bed."

"Then where are you sleeping?" I ask.

"I will sleep on the floor."

"What? You don't have to."

"I have to remain in the room with you, and since you are so uncomfortable with the idea of sharing a bed…"

"Stop using logic to make me feel guilty."

"I'm just stating facts."

"Then stop doing that."

"Very well. Good night."

"You are not sleeping on the floor," I order, crossing my arms over my chest.

"But-"

"Get in the damn bed with me. But no funny stuff or I will "try" to injure you until you can't move. Got that?"

"Hn."

I move myself to the edge of the bed and snuggle into my pillow. I feel a weight join me on the bed, but ignore the part of me that wants to jump up and run away. I close my eyes and concentrate on my breathing. This way I can ignore the other person's breathing.

I immediately notice when Itachi falls asleep because all of the tenseness in his body vanishes. God, it's like he's prepared for a fight at any moment. I yawn and sink deeper into my pillow, finally allowing myself to dream.

* * *

**Review please?**


	15. Support and Love Wanted

Dear Fans of All of My Stories,

I am going to do something unconventional (at least in terms of fanfiction), but I need to ask for a favor. A lot of the review I've read through the years have commented on my writing, talent, etc. and I'm going to ask that you remember all the joy my stories have brought you (if any). Now imagine if, instead of fanfictions, I was able to write original fiction and stay in touch with all of you? I know that doesn't make much sense, so I'll explain.

I am trying very hard to become a published author. My credits to date are four children's books, greater than 100 poems, and one novel. Currently, I'm working on my second and I'm hoping to enter it in a contest. At the same time, I really would like to gain a wide fanbase of love and such.

I have created both a Facebook and a YouTube dedicated to just my writing. The primary purpose of these things is to keep people who enjoy my writing updated on what I'm doing. The YouTube will be used for writing promotion videos, poetry readings, and updates on my daily writing. The Facebook is so I can keep track of people who like me. I also am going to try to promise that (should I ever become published) all of the people who LIKE on Facebook are going to get some recognition and reward- whether it be autographs, free copies, or wanted opinions. Right now on the Facebook page, I have a teaser for the current novel I am working on. The title of this novel is Stained.

Stained is about Thalia, a young woman who accidentally becomes a vampire. She is bitten by Cathryon and he is forced to teach her the ways of the vampire. She must learn the do's and don'ts, along with how to hunt and proper etiquette. There is political unrest, violence, and a good portion of gore.

I would like to stress that this story is ABSOLUTELY NOTHING like Twilight by Stephenie Meyer. My vampires do not sparkle, and are vicious man-eating monsters. There is also little to no love. This may disappoint some of you, but aren't you all tired of how every vampire book these days is about love? I got sick of it and decided to do something different.

Here's a review from someone who has read the first fifty pages: "I absolutely love this story! I recieved a copy of this story so I can take it home and i can personally and honestly say that I couldn't put it down! I am trying so hard to savor the last pages but i simply cant. This is better than all of the other vampire books out there!"

So, if you are interested in receiving either the Facebook link or the YouTube link, or both- please message me on here and I'll be glad to reply.

Thank you so very, very much for being so faithful to all of my stories and for loving the way I write. You guys all make my days, even if you're disappointed that I don't update as much (non-fanfiction is the reason why!). This would mean the world to me.

I love you!

Love,

Raynebow-NinjaChick


	16. With Much Regret

Dear Reader's of Akatsuki Heartbreaker,

It is with much regret that I'm going to put **Akatsuki Heartbreaker** up for adoption. I haven't worked on this story in far too long and sadly have lost touch with wherever I was going. I feel that someone with fresh eyes and ideas could bring much more to this story than I ever could, so I humbly wish someone to take up the project I started nearly five years ago and give it new life.

There was an alternate plot that I do have a copy of, so if the readers wish me to post it up here in a separate story thread I will. It broke off right after Mizuka found out she was pregnant. Instead of going to Konoha with Itachi, she would go off to raise Orochimaru's child on her own. There's at least a couple chapters of stuff from that idea. Comment on the idea if you'd like me to type it up and post it. I'll do it.

If you want to adopt this story I do have some conditions. I ask that any pre-existing plot points- the pregnancy, Mizuka's past, romances, and her kekkai genkai- not be ignored. I also require that you have something previous on your account so I can see your writing style and decide whether you fit. In case you are chosen as the new author, I do wish for credit of the first chapters and the idea and Mizuka go to me. Anything after I stopped writing is your own with my blessing. If you want my opinion, I can follow the story and comment after every chapter. Or you can send it to me before you publish and I'll edit and beta it for you. Your choice.

I can only hope that you'll give these characters, of both mine and Kishimoto's, the love and respect they deserve. I feel like I'm giving away a child, but I know that whoever takes up the pen will be one who will actually do something with this story.

To my readers, I'm sorry that I failed you in continuing on with this story. I know that many of you came to love Mizuka and her trials, but I've grown out of the phase I was in when I started this. I've grown as a writer and cannot do justice to the story I started. Please forgive me, but I hope you understand.

Love Always,

Raynebow-NinjaChick


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